Routine, Schmoutine

I'm a girl of routine.  I like things a certain way, in a certain order.  Some would call this slight OCD, I just say I'm particular.

Last night as I was brushing my teeth before climbing into bed, Richie was standing in the doorway to our bathroom just watching me.  I looked up and said "whaa?" (I had a mouth full of toothpaste bubbles).  He just laughed and said "nothing."  I knew that it was more than nothing.  He was watching my weird tooth brushing routine.  I do it the same way, every time, mornng and night.  To me, it's not weird.  It's thorough.  I twist my head and my brush in every direction until I can be sure that each tooth has been scrubbed.  And then, I brush my tongue.  This is where Richie laughs.  I guess it looks funny the way that I do it....but that's just the way it goes.  And don't expect me to change any time soon, cause it ain't happenin'.

But aside from the tooth brushing thing, I shower in a particular order as well.  Wet the hair, wash the face (I'm using a new cleanser, I'm still in the trial phase with it and still unsure if I like it), wash the hair, condition hair and leave it in while I wash and shave, then clean the ears and face again and then rinse the conditioner out.  Order, see?  If one step gets skipped, I feel off.  All day.

Today I'm off.

I got Kinley down for her nap at about 10:30 and then switched over the laundry, put some clothes away and then jumped into the shower.  I was on the face washing part (the first time) and I hear her screaming over the monitor.  Ugh.  Pit in your stomach.  That is the *one time* that you don't want to hear the screams of your baby--in the shower.  I thought to myself that surely she'll put herself back to sleep.  But no.  She just gets louder and more upset.  I begin to panic.  I *know* that nothing is wrong but all of the what-ifs come flying at me.  What if she has diarrhea and has a mess in her crib?  What if she got sick?  What if she had a bad dream?  What if she lost her pacifier?  What if she heard a scary sound?  What if someone broke into our house and is lurking in the hallways and she saw them?  Okay, so that last one is a bit far fetched....but it did cross my mind.  I was in a panic, remember?

So I put things on high speed.  Shave my armpits, wash super fast, skip the shaving and rinse my hair super fast.  I jumped out and towel dried as fast as I could and took off running down the hall. 

Ahhhhh, she was just laying back down to sleep.  Grrrr.  Had I just given her a few more minutes.....

Of course when she saw me come flying in to her room ready to fight off whatever it was that woke her, she started the ma-ma-ma-ma thing which made we swoop her into my arms and immediately drop the towel so that she could nurse.

Ten minutes later, I laid her back down to sleep.

I walked back to my room and got dressed knowing that the rest of my day will be off because I have stubble on my legs.  Ick.

That's the life of a mom, I tell ya!