Unexpected Mom Moments – And How to Handle Them

I participated in a campaign for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Wet Ones. I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

I live in Central Washington. Yakima, Washington to be exact. I’ve lived here my whole entire life – I’ve even spent almost all of it in the same zip code. You might have heard of us if you’re an apple lover… Next time you pick up a bag of apples, look for the label saying grown in Yakima – we’re the number one producer of apples in the country. We also kind of rock at other agricultural goodies – we’ve got a fast-growing and thriving wine country, and grow about 75% of the country’s hops too. {You’re welcome, beer and wine lovers :)} And every year one of my favorite events takes place in the fall, to celebrate all of the awesomeness of our area… The Central Washington State Fair. It’s a huge smorgasbord of deep fried foods, livestock and agriculture, carnival rides and games, and just plain fun. I have so many amazing memories of spending long days and nights at the fair as a kid, it was amazing to take Abby this year, now that she’s big enough to really enjoy it.

Of course, the first thing we did was check out the carnival rides. We had to bring Abby over to measure here… She just turned 3 at the end of July, and is very tall for her age – but before spending the money on an unlimited ride bracelet, I wanted to be sure she’d be big enough to ride a good amount of the kid rides. Once we made sure she was, I bought us both a wristband, and we took off into kiddie ride wonderland. Most of the rides she could go on by herself… But this giant fun house thing required momma to come along too – there was a rope ladder – think, like, pirate ship netting style? – and she got totally tangled in it. I didn’t even know how old I was until I attempted this…. Crawling through plastic tubes that make you feel like an oversized hamster really do a number of your knee caps, I tell ya. And while Abby thought that this rickety bridge was “so much cool!” to clomp across, all I could think about was whether I’d updated my life insurance policy recently… Lol.

But the real fear was still to come…. Not only did I have to jump into a ball pit {*shudder* being in a ball pit filled with 2 thousand and sixteen small children is the scariest thing you’ll ever do. You can’t get out. You don’t know what else is in there with you. It’s like quicksand….} – but then I had to face this giant slide to finally escape the “fun” of the fun house. The things we do to make our kids happy, right? Ahhhh….. Motherhood :)

Next up we played carnival games. Just a couple, since we all know they’re slightly rigged unless you’ve got some skills. And I’m sorry to say – Abby inherited by clumsiness. But that’s ok – the guy at this booth let her climb up to stand on the counter, let daddy help her aim and throw, and when she threw all 3 without winning and looked just devastated – he gave her an extra dart to throw…. Which was when she won! She got one of those cute little pink flamingos you see in the bottom left corner, and loved it. She smiles = I smile.

Next we were on to my favorite – the petting zoo! There are tons of animals to check out at the fair – the local 4-H groups bring horses and other animals, there are barns filled with bunnies and chickens, some that you can even purchase. Abby and I got to ride a camel, visited the exotic animal exhibit, and even saw the “Giant Crocodile” – it was, um, big I guess? Lol. But I loved bringing Abby to really experience the animals… You buy little cups of food, the goats poke their heads out to gobble everything you have, you can pet the cows and mini horses, and I mean really – how dang cute are these little piggies?? I loved scratching their heads, and Abby giggled at their little grunts of joy. Too fun.

And of course, you can’t enjoy the fair without the food, right? They had SO much good stuff…. Elephant Ears, giant deep fried corn dogs slathered with mustard and ketchup, bricks of curly fries, and even deep fried Snickers bars and Twinkies. I should have worn elastic pants. Mike was bummed that we missed the iconic “Lamb Burger” booth, but as a former vegetarian, it kind of freaks me out, lol. And I was so, so, so darn happy that Abby didn’t see the cotton candy until we were on the way out the gates. I’ve seen her eat it once before, and it escalates so quickly….

Well, as sticky and messy and gross as this big ol’ cheesy grin is, at least it means she had fun. I knew she was getting gooey-ed up in the back seat – but then when I turned to see daddy unbuckle her from the booster seat…. Myohmy. But she loved it, and really – if you get home after a full day at the county fair and you’re still clean, you’re doing it wrong.

Thank goodness for one of my absolute over-the-stop MUST HAVE products as a busy mom – Wet Ones wipes. I keep canisters of them in my kitchen, both bathrooms, and in the playroom. I have the individual packets in my purse, the “diaper bag” {it’s not really for diapers so much anymore, since we’re potty training, but we use it for all of the “toddler paraphernalia” we need to bring on outings}, in the truck… Everywhere. And lemme tell ya, if they can clean the sticky cotton candy face you just saw, they can clean just about anything.

“We know these messy, unexpected moments can put adults in “sticky situations.” These are the moments when your back was turned, when the glue wasn’t hidden or when that sweet sucker proved too tempting for your two-year-old. These are the moments you wish you could pause—part of you wants to clean up the mess quickly, and the other part laughs at the great memory being made.” – From the Wet Ones Sticky Situations ebook, packed full of crazy-helpful tips to help you handle life’s unexpected messes {well, I suppose they should be expected when we have toddlers right? Lol.} I absolutely LOVED reading the amazingly funny stories of messes that other mom’s submitted – helps me know I’m not alone at sometimes facing a #parentingfail or two.

What is your messiest mom moment? 

I’d love to hear your funny stories too! Tweet me at @sunandsipcups, and tell me what were the biggest messes you have encountered with your little ones. Be sure to tag #WetOnes in your post too, so they can read them too :) You can also leave me some comments below on your messes… You guys know how much I absolutely love hearing from you.