Every now and then I have an experience that reminds me, “Hey, you’re the adult now”.
Most of these experiences have one thing in common: stomach flu.
I’ve found that nothing drives home harder the fact that I’m now the adult than those days (and nights) where E. and I are both vomiting.
When E. is vomiting? I’m my mother. I’m there, holding the bucket, wiping his forehead, doing the laundry, cuddling, consoling, cajoling (and yes, sometimes holding him down screaming at 2 a.m. in the bath, but that happens). I make sure he feels as good as he possibly can, even when he feels utterly miserable.
When I’m vomiting, I want my own mother. I want to be looked after. I want her comforting presence.
But I’m the adult now.
I added a new experience to this category a couple of weeks ago.
I turned up with E. for my morning duty day at his nursery school. As usual, we went around the back to the playground to open the sandbox, set out the trikes and scooters, and look for garbage.
There were two dead birds in the playground.
I’m not talking about your typical “old and lay down to die” birds or “flew into the window” birds or even “wasn’t fast enough to dodge the cat” birds.
These were “our parents built their nest right up in the eaves and either they didn’t build it properly or we were too dumb to stay put AND the cat/raccoon found us first” birds.
There is nothing like picking up the scattered remnants (so many scattered remnants) of baby birds, fetching water to rinse off the path, and spraying a bleach solution to persuade the flies to go somewhere else, all while trying to answer E.’s incessant questions, to drive the point home.
I’m the adult now.
And some days that really sucks.
What in your life reminds you that you’re the adult now?
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Res Cogitatae 
That sounds like a very difficult situation. I’ve had years and years of those type of memories built up like so many bricks. Given the chance, I’d do it all over again 😀
Ugh! Stomach flu gets me too, I need my momma and she’s 8,000 miles away!
Also something about putting money into a college fund. I feel like I’m still in college myself most days!
Last year I had a similar “yep, I am the adult here” moment as we got attacked by Lice (twice) through my daughter’s grade school. Lice sucks (twice!)–I was the one washing her hair, her teenage brother’s hair, my hair…and going through their hair (and mine) every night for three weeks, picking through their hair for eggs, etc. We got through it once–then she got it again 2 months later! (I really wanted to run for the hills)
Oh lice, yech. I hadn’t even thought of that, but you’re so right.
I would also say chicken pox, but yay! vaccines! My mother had all three of us come down with it simultaneously while my father was away for weeks on a military exercise.
Oh my G-d, the mouse in the house experience reminded me that I needed to be the adult. Shudder.
Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Poor baby birds, and poor you for having to scrape them off the playground.
Ugh. Awful. I’m sure I would have wasted an hour just trying to figure out how I could get out of cleaning it up. Recently I had to go speak to a parent, then the principal over a a few incidents where my son was hurt. It was perfectly justified but since it was a special needs child, I felt horrible, but I had to take action.
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