When my washing machine broke while I was babysitting my grandson, I reluctantly headed to the laundromat. A kind stranger offered to help by holding the baby while I sorted clothes. Grateful, I accepted, but when I turned around minutes later, I saw something that made my blood run cold.
I’d been counting down the days, practically bursting with excitement. My first weekend alone with little Tommy, my precious grandson. At 58, I thought I’d seen it all, done it all. But nothing could have prepared me for the rollercoaster of emotions that lay ahead.
The day finally arrived. Sarah, my daughter, and her husband Mike pulled up in their sensible SUV, packed to the brim with what looked like enough baby gear to stock a small daycare.
“Mom, you sure you’re gonna be okay?” Sarah asked for what felt like the millionth time, her brow furrowed with that new-mom worry I remembered all too well.
I waved her off with a confident smile. “Honey, I raised you, didn’t I? We’ll be just fine. Now scoot! You two deserve this break.”
As they drove away, I turned to Tommy, nestled in my arms, his tiny fingers curled around my thumb. “It’s just you and me now, little man,” I cooed. “We’re gonna have the best time.”
I had it all planned out: cuddles, bottles, naps, and playtime, all neatly scheduled. What could possibly go wrong?
Famous last words.
It started with a gurgle. Not the adorable baby kind, but the ominous rumble of my ancient washing machine giving up the ghost.
I stared at the growing puddle on my laundry room floor, surrounded by a mountain of tiny onesies and burp cloths.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered, feeling my perfect weekend plans crumble. Tommy chose that moment to unleash an impressive spit-up all over his last clean outfit.
I took a deep breath. “Okay, Grammy’s got this. We’ll just pop down to the laundromat. No big deal, right?”
Oh, how wrong I was.
The local laundromat was a relic from the ’80s, all buzzing fluorescent lights and the acrid smell of too much detergent.
I juggled Tommy, the diaper bag, and an overflowing laundry basket, feeling like I was performing some sort of demented circus act.
“Need a hand there, ma’am?”
I turned to see a man about my age, all salt-and-pepper hair and a grandfatherly smile.
Under normal circumstances, I might have politely declined. But with Tommy starting to fuss and my arms about to give out, that offer of help was too tempting to resist.
“Oh, would you mind? Just for a moment while I get this started,” I said, relief flooding through me.
He reached for Tommy, his weathered hands gentle as he cradled my grandson. “No trouble at all. Reminds me of when my own were little.”
I turned to the washing machine, fumbling with quarters and detergent pods. The familiar motions were soothing, and I found myself relaxing. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.
That’s when I felt it. A prickle at the back of my neck, a sudden silence that felt oppressive. I glanced back, more out of instinct than any genuine concern.
My heart stopped.
Tommy, my precious baby grandson, had something bright and colorful in his tiny mouth. A Tide pod. And that “helpful” stranger? He was just standing there, smiling like everything was fine.
“No!” The scream tore from my throat as I lunged forward, my hands shaking so badly I could barely grab Tommy.
I pried the pod from his mouth, my mind reeling with horrible possibilities. What if I hadn’t turned around? What if he’d swallowed it?
I turned back to the strange man in a fury.
“What were you thinking?” I yelled at the man, clutching Tommy to my chest. “Don’t you know how dangerous these are?”
He just shrugged, that infuriating smile still in place. “Kids put everything in their mouths. No harm done.”
“No harm done? Are you mad?” I snatched up a detergent pod and thrust it toward him. “Here, why don’t you eat one then and we’ll see how it agrees with you!”
The man raised his hands and backed away. “What? No ways. It’s not like he got any, he was just nibbling on the edge…”
“Nibble on the edge then!” I snapped. I was practically stuffing the pod in his mouth at this point, I was so angry!
“Leave me alone, you crazy Karen!” The man tugged the pod from my fingers and threw it aside. “Fine thanks I’m getting for trying to help you.”
I wanted to shake him, to make him understand the gravity of what could have happened. I may well have done something crazy too, but Tommy was crying now, big hiccuping sobs that matched the frantic beating of my heart.
“You, are an absolute menace!” I yelled at the man as I started grabbing my things. “And an idiot, too, if you think it’s harmless to let kids chew on whatever they put in their mouths.”
I snatched up the washing basket, not caring about the wet clothes left behind or the quarters wasted.
All that mattered was getting Tommy out of there, away from that clueless man and his careless disregard for a baby’s safety.
The drive home was a blur. Tommy’s cries from the backseat felt like an accusation. How could I have been so stupid? So careless?
I’d handed my grandson over to a complete stranger, all because I was too proud to admit I might need more help than I’d thought.
Back home, I collapsed onto the couch, Tommy held tight against me. He was still crying, and I couldn’t help wondering if he’d swallowed some of the chemicals after all.
My hands were still shaking as I took out my phone and called my doctor. I couldn’t stop the tears that came, hot and heavy, when the receptionist picked up.
“Miss Carlson?” I sobbed. “This is Margo. Please, can I speak to Dr. Thompson? It’s urgent.”
The receptionist quickly put me through, and I explained everything to Dr. Thompson. He asked me a series of questions, like whether Tommy was vomiting or experiencing any trouble breathing.
“No, none of that, doctor,” I replied.
“It seems like you got lucky then, Margo,” he replied, “but keep a close eye on that grandson of yours and get him to the hospital immediately if he starts wheezing, coughing, or vomiting, okay?”
I promised I would, thanked Dr. Thompson, and ended the call. His words had given me some relief, but the “what ifs” kept playing through my mind like some horrible movie I couldn’t turn off.
What if I hadn’t looked back in time? What if Tommy had swallowed that pod? What if, what if, what if…
As the adrenaline faded, exhaustion set in. But even as my body begged for rest, my mind wouldn’t quiet.
The weight of responsibility I’d taken on hit me full force. This wasn’t like babysitting for a few hours. This was a whole weekend where I was solely responsible for this tiny, precious life.
I looked down at Tommy, now sleeping peacefully against my chest, unaware of how close we’d come to disaster. His little rosebud mouth, the one that had so nearly ingested something so dangerous, now puckered slightly in sleep.
“I’m so sorry, sweetheart,” I whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead. “Grammy promises to do better.”
And in that moment, I made a vow. Never again would I let my pride or anyone else’s apparent helpfulness put Tommy at risk. From now on, it was just us: Grammy and Tommy against the world.
The rest of the weekend passed in a blur of hypervigilance. Every little sound had me on edge, every potential hazard magnified in my mind.
By the time Sarah and Mike returned, I was a wrung-out mess of nerves and sleep deprivation.
“Mom, are you okay?” Sarah asked, concern etching her features as she took in my disheveled appearance.
I plastered on a smile, handing over a happily gurgling Tommy. “Just fine, honey. We had a wonderful time, didn’t we, little man?”
As I watched them drive away, relief and guilt warred within me. I’d kept Tommy safe in the end. But the close call at the laundromat would haunt me for a long time to come.
I trudged back inside, eyeing the pile of still-unwashed laundry. With a sigh, I picked up the phone.
“Hello? I’d like to order a new washing machine, please. ASAP.”
Some lessons, it seems, come at a higher price than others. But if it meant keeping my grandson safe, no cost was too great. After all, that’s what being a grandmother is all about: love, learning, and sometimes, hard-won wisdom.
Fаns саll Gоldiе Наwn, 78, ‘ugly’ in swimsuit рhоtоs, Kurt Russеll dеfеnds hеr, sаys shе’s bеаutiful
With an unmatched amount of self-assurance, Goldie Hawn never lets her admirers down with her elegance, even in the face of hateful comments from the internet.
The performer, who acknowledges that “there’s a certain reality” for aging Hollywood stars, does not let the insults and derogatory remarks from trolls bother her.
Given that she is one of the most well-known actors in the business and that Kurt Russell is smitten with her, it should come as no surprise that the 78-year-old seems unfazed.
Discover why Goldie Hawn is being criticized harshly online by reading on!
Goldie Hawn is a formidable woman, leading a famous family that includes the well-known actors Oliver (47), Kate Hudson (45), and Wyatt Russell (37).
Hawn’s girl-next-door charm earned her prominent parts in movies including Private Benjamin (1980), Overboard (1987) with Kurt Russell, with whom she has been in a relationship since 1983, and Stephen Spielberg’s The Sugarland Express (1972).
Photo agency Shutterstock/Featureflash
Before meeting the now 73-year-old Russell, Hawn went through two divorces. In 2007, she explained their decision to forgo marriage to Woman’s Day, saying, “We have done just perfectly without marrying.” I already feel committed, and isn’t that the whole point of marriage?
Additionally, Kate, who received a Golden Globe nomination for her role in Almost Famous, maintains that the two are a perfect match.
“Mom is a butterfly and she moves quickly. Pa also enjoys his house and his family. But, Hudson says of her mother and stepfather—who also have an actor for a son—”When they’re together, it’s so powerful.”
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It’s wonderful to know you’re getting older.
“Belongs in a nursing home.”
“So adorable together”
Contents
It’s wonderful to know you’re getting older.
“Belongs in a nursing home.”
“So adorable together”
It’s wonderful to know you’re getting older.
With her renowned golden locks remaining natural, the Oscar-winning Hawn remains attractive even after over fifty years of acting and raising three children.
“Aging is a natural part of life. Living intentionally helps you recognize that life is full of transformations, which you simply have to go through, the celebrity told People. “You know what, it’s great that you’re getting older? It means you’re still alive!”
However, she is well aware of the ageism that permeates the field and its supporters.
Shutterstock is credited.
Regarding the ageism present in Hollywood, Hawn stated that women will always fight this war.
Do you really believe that you will oppose the system? When you turn forty-five, you believe you’re going to show Hollywood that you’re still a desirable, marketable object? No. A specific world exists,” Hawn informs Bazaar. Does it infuriate me? No. I don’t get irritated easily. I’m not an extremist. Anger is a useless emotion. It isn’t beneficial.
The First Wives Club actress accepts her advanced age, but she is unable to avoid the barrage of abuse that surfaces on social media.
“Belongs in a nursing home.”
The happy couple took a little trip to Greece in 2022, where they were seen having a great time by the sea in a number of pictures.
While her leading guy wore a basic pair of black and white board shorts, Hawn looked stylish in a black and white polka dot sundress over a one-piece black swimming suit.
Off the coast of Skiathos, Greece, the grandparents, who appeared to be in their honeymoon phase, slipped into a speedboat and rode through the crystal-clear Aegean Sea.
The internet community аttасked the stunning blonde and her charming beau without holding back, instead of praising the couple for their self-assurance and undying love.
“They appear as though they belong in a retirement community. They both appear really ancient, and while I can appreciate that they are older, [it] seems likе they didn’t age well,” a critic remarks.
Another says, “No, not attractive,” while a third writes, “Can you think of a famous person who is naturally ugly? Goldie Hawn.
“OMG-Goldie Hawn will give me nightmares with what she has done with her face,” says another.
“So adorable together”
Many fans stood up for the couple, who most recently made an appearance together as Mr. and Mrs. Claus in The Christmas Chronicles franchise, because of their love.
Someone says, “She looks good.There will be trolls there as well, however they won’t appear as nice.
Outstanding given your age. A considerate netizen writes, “Loving each other still is testament to your commitment to each of you.”
“They are so adorable together right now, that’s what love is all about, growing older together Goldie is as gorgeous as ever,” writes someone else.
But Hawn’s lifelong girlfriend has the sweetest things to say.
“We were planning to go out to dinner the other night. “You’re unbelievable,” he says as he looks at me, the Snatched star recalls. “It’s unbelievable how [beautiful] you look,” he exclaimed.
Shutterstock is credited.
Furthermore, Hawn described the 2017 ceremony that saw the two actors receive their individual stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as a “lovefest.”
Following their kiss beside their side-by-side stars at the ceremony, Russell addressed his stunning companion and said, “To you, I owe my amazing life…To put it simply, Goldie, I love you. That is far more impressive than all the stars in the sky or on the boulevard combined. “Goldie Hawn is the only person I’d rather be next to for all of that,” he said.
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