Confessions of a New Mum - Guest Post by Jenn | Motherhood

This is the third guest post from other bloggers about their memories of being a new Mum. If you would like to write a post for this series let me know in the comments or send me an email to kylie(@)kyliepurtell(dot)com

The ever lovely Jenn has kindly shared today's story about one of her more ridiculous moments as a brand new Mum. I have to admit I had quite the giggle while reading this, it totally sounds like something I would do! I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did, and if you do, don't forget to leave Jenn some comment love.

You know the stories you hear about new mums… The ones about where a new mum leaves home with only minimal nappy bag contents and ends up with a massive expoolosion, or baby projectile vomits for the first time ever over the spunky waiter at a cafe, or in a sleep deprived moment the nappy gets put on backwards (or not at all) and it’s not until mum is miles from home and baby is wet/dirty/crying that she realises…

When Charlotte was less than four weeks old I decided to go for a bushwalk. Tom suggested that I go to the Fairfax Track at Blackheath. It had been a few months since I’d been able to get out and about in our amazing national park, and at three and a half weeks post giving birth I was feeling up to a gentle stroll. We had walked the track previously and found it to be very boring as, though at one point it has stunning views, it is basically an asphalt path which is stroller and bicycle friendly. The Blue Mountains Bush Walks book calls it ‘Family Fun on the Fairfax Track’. I decided it would be nice to walk down there from home, rather than drive to the start of the track, even though it would be a bit of a walk.

I thought about looking it up in the book to remind myself of where the entrance to the track was but decided I would be able to find it.

I thought about putting sunscreen on but decided it was early and I couldn’t be bothered.

I thought about taking more than one litre of water but decided it was overkill.

I thought about packing a nappy bag but decided that I would only be gone for 60-90 minutes and if I changed Charlotte before we left, she would be fine.

So at 08:55am we started walking. After about 45 minutes I still wasn’t at Evan’s Lookout Road, where the track starts, and Evan’s Lookout Road is a really really long road. It was getting warm. I thought about turning around and heading back but said to myself ‘you’re nearly there. Just suck it up and keep going’. So I did. After an hour and fifteen minutes I still wasn’t at the end of the road, but I was so much closer that I told myself ‘you’ve come all this way, you may as well get to the track now’. After an hour and a half Charlotte started hollering – she was due for a feed. I told her ‘it’s ok baby, we’ll be there soon and we can sit down and enjoy the view over the valley and you can have a drink’.

After an hour and forty five minutes I got to the end of Evan’s Lookout Road and realised that the Fairfax Track is actually at the end of Blackheath’s other major road and lookout: Govett’s Leap. Govett’s Leap is far closer to home.

Dammit.

The view that Jenn was hoping to see that day but didn't

There are steps at Evans that you have to go down to get to the view, so, continuing on in my pigheaded stubborn mood, I manoeuvred the pram down the steps towards the scenery and sat down looking over the (extremely hazy and unusually uninspiring) view whilst I breastfed my daughter.

Then I had to turn around and walk all the way back again.

I held Charlotte in one arm whilst I hauled the empty pram back up the stairs with the other. I started back down the never ending road back to town. It was really hot. Charlotte was really cranky. I was feeling really stupid.

Charlotte was crying and sleeping, crying and sleeping. I was getting sunburnt and running out of water. She did what sounded like her biggest poo to date. I had no spare nappies, except for an old one which I had secured under my hat in a makeshift legionnaire’s style. She kept crying. There were no shady places to sit down.

For a good twenty minutes I fed her. Whilst I walked. And pushed the pram.

As you do. 

Talk about multi tasking!

Three and a half hours and 14 (FOURTEEN!) km of walking later, we finally made it home. It was 1pm.

She was hot, I was bothered and I’ve never felt like such a massive idiot in all my life. I’m not normally so stubborn! I have no idea why i had such a pigheaded resolve to get to the bloody track come hell or high water. It was truly bizarre behaviour and all i could think was if I had just checked the bloody book in the first place I would have realised that the Fairfax track was at Govett’s not Evan’s and I probably would have decided that even that was too far to push a pram less than four weeks after giving birth.

What is your most ridiculous/disorganised parenting moment? Please tell me I’m not alone…

Previous Confessions...
Confessions of a New Mum Part One - Learning Curves and 'Un'Enjoyment
Confessions of a New Mum Part Two - Stitched Up
Confessions of a New Mum Part Three - The Part-time SAHM
Confessions of a New Mum Part Four - Mum Appreciation
Confessions of a New Mum Part Five - Losing My Confidence
Confessions of a New Mum - Kelly from Handmade Tears and Triumphs (Guest Post)
Confessions of a New Mum - Bron from Big Brother, Little Sister & the Baby (Guest Post)
Confessions of a New Mum - Jenn from Mountains & Musings (Guest Post)