Motherhood Fail

Sometimes I think I have this motherhood thing down. Little R is healthy, growing like a weed, eats solid food like a champion, and (usually) sleeps like an angel for about 15 hours/day. She's "very advanced" in all her milestones per the pediatrician and almost always in a happy, cheerful mood. But when I start congratulating myself on my parenting awesomeness, something like today happens and I am reminded that she's doing well due to luck rather than anything I did.

Ever since little R learned to crawl, she has absolutely hated having her diapers changed because it requires her to stay still in a prone position, and she has other plans for her time. Whenever I rediaper her, she struggles and keeps flipping herself over into a sitting position, and then I have to flip her back. Today right before naptime was no exception, and so after I gave her a new diaper, she flipped herself up to sit on the changing table yet again.

I let her sit there for a moment, and bent to put the dirty diaper in the Diaper Genie. It was full, so I thought I would change the bag. As I removed the full bag and began to tie it off (I was next to the changing table with one eye on little R, who was still sitting on the changing table, playing with a clean diaper), it occurred to me that my hands were full, and if she decided to move, that would be VERY BAD.

Of course at that very moment she suddenly leaned far forward (still sitting) and fell headfirst off the changing table. She did a somersault in the air (I can see it in my mind's eye: OMG so absolutely terrifying), and landed on the wood floor (no carpeting in her room). It was lucky that she somersaulted, because it meant that she landed on her bottom instead of her head.

She cried bitterly for about 5 minutes, and after that was fine, not even a bruise. I thought she might be traumatized, but the next time I changed her she also tried to leap off the table: apparently the experience was not unpleasant enough to alter her behavior.

I was traumatized though: the thought that she could have easily been seriously injured due to my carelessness makes me feel sick. The minimum standard of good parenting is to protect your child from serious, avoidable harm, and today I did not meet it. Ugh. In a way I suppose it's a good reminder to: 1. be humble about your parenting prowess (since it's probably not much, especially if you are a first-time mother like me) and 2. be careful with your precious, fragile baby!!

Progress:
--Exercise: 1 hour at the gym.
--Diet: Breakfast: Banana pancakes with peanut butter and jam; Lunch: Breaded pork cutlet and rice; Dinner: A banana pancake with peanut butter and jam. (Not a very sterling eating day, unfortunately: I need to start eating vegetables!!!)
--Other: Did not drink 8 glasses water.