You know, in life, I’m a pretty organized girl who has a bad habit of planning everything down to the quarter-second. Ever since I became a parent, I’ve been constantly glued to you—the calendar. Yes, you, with your little numbered boxes that seem so innocent, but that guide my daily life and my year. Yes, you! The calendar with your months featuring cute little animal faces to try to make me forget that the weeks are way too short (nice try!).
We have a love-hate relationship, because if you weren’t there, my son probably wouldn’t even be vaccinated. That’s exactly the kind of topic that makes my hair stand on end! Those “great” vaccine appointments scheduled a light-year away from the present. You know, I can’t help but hate the CLSC receptionist for a split second when she gives me the next vaccine appointment IN 6 MONTHS. You agree that six months is a long time, right? Six months is six menstrual cycles of giving your boyfriend the stink eye! Six months is 180 loads of laundry! I get that the lady at the CLSC is just doing her job—and that’s great—but the situation still bugs me. You walk out of the appointment, trying to get your little one dressed while rummaging through your wallet for their health card, and she says, “December 18 at 1 p.m.—does that work for you?” Well, um, yeah, sure!?!And where do you even write down your December appointment? Okay, okay, I know the best thing to do is set a reminder on your phone, but…!!!
Deep down, you, the calendar, save our lives just as much as you stress us out. You fill up as fast as a dishwasher! Is there ever a moment when we parents can go to bed with a clear head? You know, without having to do something the next day and the day after that—and so life goes on!
I don’t know if your partners are like mine, but mine is more in the mood for a WEEKLY calendar. First off, he relies on me to tell him what to do, when to do it, and at what time. Second, to this day, I remain skeptical about his understanding of said calendar. In the end, I’m the backup for the calendar hanging in the kitchen cabinet (a talking calendar—so cool!).
Deep down, my boyfriend’s the smarter one, because he’s ZERO stressed out by all those little boxes in the month (Amen to you, boyfriend!). One day, you—the calendar—and I will make peace, and I’ll invite you out for a beer! Be patient, because that’ll probably have to wait until I retire!