Wednesday, August 24, 2016

A first time for everything

You never know what the day will bring when you wake up in the morning. Especially if you're a parent. And today...well, today was a day of firsts.

I called in a report to Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks for the first time today. A young mother deer and her two fawns have been frequenting our backyard, leaving scat and eating apples from our tree. This hasn't bothered me and we've enjoyed watching them from the window, but this morning we noticed one of the fawns had a broken leg. And by broken, I mean BROKEN. The jagged, bloody bone was sticking out and the rest of the leg was hanging by a small piece of hide.

So I called it in. I was afraid for it. Believe it or not, the lady at Fish, Wildlife, and Parks said the deer would probably be fine.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "Half its leg is hanging off."

She was sure.

We also accepted our first foster placement today. Some time tomorrow a newborn boy will be discharged from the hospital and come to our home for at least 30 days. We've been scrambling to find clothes, bottles, diapers, and all the other little things you forget you need. People have been SO gracious to offer help! But honestly we have no idea what we're in for. He will be the first foster child to come through our doors. Maybe the first of many, but who knows?

Perhaps the most shocking first of the day came via my oldest son. Today was the first time he's had the self-awareness to be embarrassed of me.

"Are you going to wear that?" he asked.

"Um, yes."

He rolled his eyes. "Those look like pajamas."

Holy cow, who is this gangly man-child? Since when did he even NOTICE, let alone CARE about clothes, whether mine, his, or anyone else's? Someone hand me a brown paper bag please, I need to breathe into it for a minute. This was a definite first, but I have a feeling it won't be the last.

And the day's not even over yet. Good thing I have a secret stash of candy that my kids don't know about.

So what kind of memorable "firsts" have you experienced?