The Day I Became A Blubbering Mess

Growing up, I was not prone to crying. I’d get angry, but I didn’t often cry. I think it drove my mom a little crazy sometimes, that lack of watery emotion, but that may be because she was (and still is) a bit of a crier herself. {Don’t worry though Mom, this story ends with me being even more like you.}

We’d all be watching TV when a sappy part of a show, or a Hallmark commercial, or a soup commercial, or any other number of silly things would pop on. My siblings and I would nudge each other and gesture toward our mom.

Yep, crying again!

Then we’d all tease her, and she’d tell us to knock it off while she laughed and wiped her tears away.

Something happened on August 27, 2007, though. On that day I became a blubbering mess.

Seriously – what is it about motherhood that does that? What was it about three crying babies being pulled from me (no, really – triplets + c-section = three babies being pulled from me) on August 27, 2007, that flipped my switch from unemotional Helen to hot mess, maybe a touch of crazy Helen?

Let’s look at hot mess, maybe a touch of crazy evidence, shall we?

Ridiculous things I cry (or at least tear up) over…

Someone winning the showcase on The Price Is Right

Someone being told to “Come on down!” even

Mary Poppins (What?! Why?!)

Hallmark ads (Duh)

A song about Yellow Shoes (seriously had me ugly crying in the car once, despite never affecting me before)

A recent Chick-fil-a ad 

The song “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” (OK, that one might be legit)

Disney commercials (maybe because I so desperately want Florida temperatures right now)

Inside Out, and not even the “normal people cry at this part” parts

Seeing anyone else cry

Seeing anyone get really, really excited

When my daughter met Mickey Mouse this fall (see above)

Elementary school concerts

An Air Bud movie (ugh, I’m so ashamed!)

The Fresh Beat Band solving the problem and singing about it (Now I’m really ashamed – you guys, this is a deep, dark secret. Please don’t tell anyone!)

I cry about normal things, too – sad news, watching my kids hurt (emotionally or physically), or my friends dealing with hard things (that’s been happening a lot lately). I don’t often cry over my kids driving me nutty – my chosen coping mechanism for rotten behavior is humor.

I mean really, I can’t cry over every little thing, right?