You know the Laugh-Cry: when you giggle so hard, tears stream out. Here are 10 sure-fire triggers.
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The Laugh-Cry: 10 Sure-Fire Triggers

 

You know the Laugh-Cry: when you giggle so hard, tears stream out. Here are 10 sure-fire triggers.

By Julia Arnold of FranticMama.com

You know the times in your life when you can’t really muster an all-out sob fest because the situation doesn’t quite merit real, actual tears, and you can’t explode into joyful laughter because that would just be too twisted, but something needs to come out? When sounds do eventually emerge from your mouth, it’s in the form of what I call the Laugh-Cry.

The Laugh-Cry is a ridiculous and involuntary mixture of insane-sounding laughter and ugly crying that we mothers experience far too often.

Here are my top 10 causes of the Laugh-Cry (all of which I have personally experienced; in some cases, more than once):

1.     When your child projectile vomits all over you.

2.     When you hear the sound of the Lego box with 500 pieces being dumped out on the kitchen floor.

3.     When you receive a call for the second day in a row telling you it is a snow day, so school is cancelled.

4.     When your toddler scribbles with permanent marker all over the only piece of new furniture you’ve bought in the last 5 years.

5.     When you back into your mother-in-law’s car, hurrying to get to preschool drop-off.

6.     When you find out that your spouse will be out of town for work for an entire week.

7.     When your child discovers there is a Caillou marathon on t.v.

8.     When you realize that the reason your socks are wet is because you stepped in a puddle of pee.

9.     When your kid points out your newest zit right before you are heading out the door.

10.   When you get one child back to sleep in the middle of the night, only to hear the baby crying 3 minutes after you lie back down.

These ten events, my friends, all call for the no-holds-barred, absurd yet somehow cathartic Laugh-Cry. What should we add to this list?

*****

About the Author

Julia Arnold writes about life, love, motherhood and more. You can find her at FranticMama.com, and on Facebook.