Stay-at-home grandma and grandma: a neglected group

It is said that full-time mothers are tired, but in fact, full-time grandmothers and full-time grandmothers are also very tired! Every day a child needs to change two or three sets of naked clothes, not to mention how many things need to be paid attention to when bringing a child. Carrying a baby is a heavy manual labor, and everyone who has brought it knows it.

Bao Mama @Luyao from Lilac Mama App Planet told everyone about the life of her full-time grandma and grandma.

I met Grandma Tao Tao today while pushing grapes downstairs for a walk. Grandma Tao Tao and I have known each other for a long time. We started to take grapes out in the spring, and we often met the grandparents and grandchildren in the courtyard of the community. Tao Tao is two months older than Grape, and just passed his first birthday a few days ago. Currently, his grandmother takes him alone.

Daily life of a full-time senior

When I first met Grandma Tao Tao, Tao Tao could not crawl and just started eating solid food. Tao Tao is very good and has a good appetite. He can eat whatever he wants. Grandma Tao Tao proudly told me at that time, I will take him alone, no problem. I told his mother, you are busy with your work, don’t worry about your family, I will call you if it really doesn’t work.

See you today, the old lady’s face is obviously tired, and we show each other the white hair that grows after the baby is born. The old lady said that Tao Tao’s mother didn’t go home until half past eleven last night, and the child would not sleep until she saw her mother. The baby’s mother’s breastfeeding leave is gone, and she only works overtime until after eight o’clock, and then said that the department hadn’t had a dinner party for a long time, and went out for a dinner party until midnight.

“I’m going home tonight, and I’ll come back after lunch at noon on Sunday. I really have to go back to sleep,” said the old lady. “Let them take care of the baby on weekends. I go to bed at eleven every day and wake up at six, and I don’t have enough rest. I cook the meals for adults and children, and I cook seven or eight times a day. They sleep until eight every day. Since I have never cooked, I said you should go to the cafeteria of the unit to eat, I can’t do it anymore.”

I felt that the style of the conversation was wrong, so I quickly changed the subject: “Is Tao Tao eating well now?”

“Drink milk powder in the morning, a steamed egg at ten o’clock, two spoonfuls of rice noodles at noon, and eat porridge or mixed soup (pimple soup) in the afternoon.”

I wanted to remind her that the baby can eat some blocky food for one year old, but I didn’t say it because the old lady didn’t have time to make it.

“The child gets covered all over his body as soon as he eats. He needs to change his clothes every time he eats, and he needs to change two or three sets of clothes every day. In summer, he doesn’t want to put on diapers. The shorts I wear, I wash them when I pee. I have to wash them several times a day. My daughter-in-law said, how can you take care of your children alone? We were too busy at home on weekends to wash our faces, so I said we would just bring them.”

Children and adults can’t eat

There are a few more in the community

Mi Duo is one and a half years old, and was first brought by grandma and then grandma. Every time I see her, I sit in a cart, quietly. Say hello to her and she has to look away. Grandma drank gruel every morning and noon, probably to cater to the child’s eating habits. Make dinner in the afternoon while the kids are sleeping. Only this meal was richer, because the daughter and son-in-law came home for dinner.

Jiaqi is a little older and an obedient girl. Grandma would let Jiaqi watch an episode of cartoons when she was cooking at noon, and she didn’t dare to watch too much for fear that it would be bad for her eyes. Besides, the child can’t stay alone. Grandma can only hurry up.

Chen Chen is over two years old and has stopped sleeping in the morning. The little boy’s lively nature made grandma dare not leave for a moment. So lunch was canceled directly, and both of them drank milk. When Chenchen went to sleep in the afternoon, grandma made lunch for Chenchen and dinner for the adults.

I can’t imagine how these old people persevere in the heavy manual labor of bringing a baby. They may not know how to take their children to play early childhood games, or to provide them with nutritionally balanced food supplements, or even restrict their children’s development of large-scale sports, because they are most at ease when carrying children or tying them in a stroller when doing housework. But they work really hard!

Let’s do more for them

More and more people are concerned about postpartum depression. I wonder if elderly people with babies are also depressed.

A while ago, the country opened up to three children. I thought that it might be okay to have three children by myself, but after they give birth to nine grandchildren, it is estimated that I can go to see Marx. My old man who retired seven years later than me certainly can’t help, just thinking about it makes me terrified.

After giving birth to a child, I am struggling to take care of my baby full-time. In fact, I also consider the elderly. I wish they could have a free and relaxed old age and not live for their children all their lives. It is not easy for them to raise us, and they are not obliged to help us with our children. To help is love, not to be duty.

Let’s do more for mom and mother-in-law.

They are mothers too. All mothers are angels.