Crib Recall

Setting aside the humor for a second, I thought I'd put it out there for all who haven't heard about the recent crib recall. Several makes and models of cribs are being recalled b/c of a dangerous defect that can (and unfortunately, has) resulted in the suffocation of an infant. All cribs that have DROP DOWN SIDES (as opposed to a drop down mattress) are most likely in this category. Some areas have gone as far as making it illegal to sell cribs with drop down sides while most manufactures will have completely dropped the production of drop down side cribs by early 2010. The problem is that many people buy cribs second hand (like myself) and will have no way of knowing if the crib they're buying for their infant is in this category.

The story that put this into perspective is absolutely devastating. As a mother, I almost had to leave the room while the story was being told on the local news station, but forced myself to watch it in order to get the facts. A loving mother puts her 10 month old infant son down for a nap without a worry, and just hours later walks in to find her son dead. The baby some how got his head through the side post and a rail and giggled the drop-down side loose causing it to fall and suffocate him. The mother said she dropped to her knees at the site of her son and screamed.

I don't know about any of you, but I would be in a MENTAL institution. I have tears running down my cheeks just thinking of that poor baby and his mother. I can't help but think of the situation in terms of my own daughter.... and how I would feel if I ever found her... I can't even type the rest. That has to be the worst thing a mother can experience..... the death of her baby. Especially when the child is so young and innocent and had so much life to live and so much left to experience. How does one cope with such a tragedy? I know the saying goes, "God doesn't give you more than you can handle" but I don't think ANYONE is equipped to handle that. I have total respect for anyone who has gone through something like that and emerged a semi-normal, functioning, individual. It's funny how if I had heard that story 2 years ago (before I had a baby), I would've thought it was sad, but it wouldn't have struck such a deep cord in my heart. I NEVER would've cried about it... or felt like puking over it. Being a mother.... it changes you. You see the world in a whole new light. And there's no right way to describe that "light" b/c it truly is different for everyone and for every child. All I can say is that it has softened me. It has made me respect my mother. It has brought me closer to my family. It has put those silly dramatic chapters of my life away in a box.... things I used to get up in arms about or get in the middle of... just seem to slide right on by now (and boy could I stir up the drama back in the day). It has made me see that a bad day at work means nothing in the grad scheme of things. It has made me realize just how much I DON'T know. It has made me look at people with less of a judgmental eye. It has made me learn how to put others before myself, and nothing before my child. It has defined the word, "Love." It has made me appreciate ALL that God has given me and made me notice the things I had previously taken for granted. It has made me a better person. It has given me direction. It has given me peace. I could go on and on... but the truth is, I find something new everyday, that motherhood has given me. To sum it up... I love it. Sure, it's got its up's and downs and it's not always happy moments. There are many moments of frustration and anger, tears, and disappointment... but overall, it's taken life to another level. Yeah... that's the best way yet I've come up with to describe it.... it's taken life to another level. And not everyone gets it... especially if you're not a mother. It's like a whole different culture. Before I was here, I used to wonder how someone could consume themselves with bottles and nap times and squeeky toys.... and how anyone could be so obsessed with the smallest detail in their child's life... or how they could not go an entire conversation w/o mentioning something about their child... in fact, it used to bug me. Now, I see why. The fog has been lifted and I feel bad for ever thinking those thoughts. Truth is though, no one gets it until they're here. And it's a scary thought for a lot of people to end up like us loonies who can't go 5 minutes w/o adding and "ie" to the end of a word, but it truly is the greatest gift in life.

And... my brain is fried. I stopped to read what I had written and blanked, so this will be the end even though I know there was more I wanted to write. See? That's what happens when you're pregnant! You loose your mind! Anyone seen mine? I'll settle for marbles at this point.