“You know that is for the baby right?”
The Schwan’s man throws this causal comment my way as I prepare to put Darren down for the night at my parents place.
I don’t even have to turn to know what he is talking about. Pretty sure Darren’s nuk is residing in my mouth at the moment. And yes, I am casually sucking it as I flip the lights off.
How embarrassing.
The sad thing is it happens all the time. I mean, I suck on Darren’s nuk all the time, but strangers usually don’t see this habit.
My mom butts in and asks; “Didn’t you have two nuks?”
Now I am forced to admit that the second nuk is MIA. Probably lost in the all the juggling that went on when we brought Darren back from Milwaukee.
My dad only laughs and adds fuel to the fire.
“So you lost Darren’s and won’t share yours? Jeez.”
Pretty sure I am completely beet red under this caramel completion. But I just roll with it because it’s not the first or last time anyone will catch me sucking on the nuk.
In my defense I have my reasons.
First off, Darren’s nuk is in constant disappearance mode.
It would help if he actually cared about his nuk, but he doesn’t. In his mind it is a toy, a teething ring, and occasionally, a sleep activator. Other than that he could care less where it is. Meaning, he can have it in his mouth one second and the next it’s nowhere to be found because he casually dropped it.
To combat this I have gotten into the habit of just putting it in my own mouth. Weird, I know, but for someone who daily has frequent bouts of mommy brain, this is the safest spot for it. I’ve tried putting it in my pocket, that doesn’t work because it gets lost in couches and under car seats and everyone knows that what’s in my couches is not very sanitary.
Second off, it is a great mind motivator (not to mention stress reliever). You wouldn't believe how many times I am chewing on his nuk and writing a blog post at the same time.
So don’t credit these words to pure genius; it’s all in the nuk sucking. You should try it sometime.
