Crazy old lady babynaps Maia!
Posted by Fyreflixie 23 weeks 5 days ago
I’m bothered by something.
This afternoon, we went out to a charity fundraiser at a bar that my brother-in-law and his girlfriend, my bff (Sommer) work at. I used to work there as well. One of the daytime regulars, a woman named Kay that I was never particularly close to as she’s rather stand-offish and kind of bitchy, came over to say hello and meet Maia.
Maia was holding a spear of broccoli she’d been nibbling, which Kay took away from her for no good reason other than that she wanted to know what the baby had in her hand — despite Sommer and I both protesting. This should have set off alarm bells in my head, but we were sitting in a kind of loud spot and I didn’t think much of it.
Then Kay took Maia out of my arms. I’m not one of those parents who freaks out about other people holding my baby, so despite the fact that I wasn’t really happy about it, I didn’t say anything. Kay was so happy: “Oh, I’ve watched you grow up on Facebook! You’re my first Facebook baby!” (My profile is private, my picture albums are friends only, and we’re not friends, so … clearly I’m missing something here) and I took the opportunity gobble down some nachos while my hands were free.
I turned around and KAY WAS GONE. WITH MY BABY. Wandering around the bar, introducing Maia to her friends. I knew the people she spoke with, so again, despite my unease, I didn’t go after her. Then Kay went onto the patio with Maia — it had been raining off and on all day, the air was cool, and Maia wasn’t wearing socks, a hat, or a jacket. But I could see them, and I really did not want to come across as overbearing, so I just watched them, feeling anxious. I got up once and made my way halfway across the bar to them, but went back to our table.
Five minutes later, Kay came back and Maia dove into my arms.
I am so bothered by this. Even though I didn’t want her to, and wasn’t comfortable with it at all, I let that woman hold and wander off with my baby. Why would I do that? It doesn’t make any damned sense. The nearest reason I can come up with is that I couldn’t figure out a real reason why Kay shouldn’t hold Maia, or wander around with her — other than it seems socially inappropriate. I mean, doesn’t it? I wouldn’t take the baby of someone I hadn’t spoken with in over two years and prance around a bar chatting with friends, showing off my casual acquaintance’s kid. I genuinely feel like she committed a total faux pas and I allowed it. But then I think the fault also lies with me; I should have said something. I should have gone after them. It would have been completely reasonable to say “I’d like to hold her” or “Please stay here with her” or a hundred other things.
I need to figure out what to say, and never let that happen again.
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