09/02/2022
By Kate Stone Lombardi
“Don’t forget about your old mother while you enjoy that baby.”
That was ten minutes ago, in a phone call from my (yep, 98 1/2 year-old) mother. As she spoke, I had my eye on the video baby monitor my daughter and her husband left for us. We are babysitting our 10-month-old granddaughter for five days, while her parents are away. She is starting to stir from her nap.
The baby is a doll. Sweet, good natured, and her parents have her on a relatively strict schedule with meals, naps and bedtime, complete with accompanying routines, which makes taking care of the little one extra easy. But she is a 10-month-old and she is on the move.
“I’m worried that they’ll just open up the new Covid boosters to all ages, and they’ll be a mad rush,” my Mom is saying. ” I don’t want to wait in line.”
“Mom, I think you’ll be able to get the booster easily. They aren’t expecting a shortage. It will be available at your drug store.”
“Not my drug store,” she insisted. “I want to go to the hospital and I was hoping you could arrange an appointment for me.”
Sigh. Now the baby is squawking.
[Fifteen minutes and one serious diaper change later]
Where was I? Baby is up and about. She is having a standoff with our cats. They don’t know what to make of each other. I can’t leave them together, because the baby could grab the cat’s face, fur or tail, and then the cat might scratch her.
Wait – must go hard boil an egg for baby’s lunch. Grandad will watch her. And I need to get Fedex package ready – tax papers to my Mom’s accountant. I think baby may have just eaten a dust bunny.
Serena is playing again tonight at 7 pm. Hope I can stay up. Oh man, my inbox is blowing up. Baby’s clothes are ready for the dryer. She sure goes through a lot of outfits. Hold on…she’s crawling out of sight. Okay, she’s back. She is clawing at the cats’ scratch pad. Well, I didn’t want to trim her nails anyway.
Mom on phone. Does she have appointment yet? Is it possible the baby is hungry again? I have nicknamed her “Groceries.” Oh boy, she has got a hold of one of her grandfather’s shoes and is trying to eat the laces.
Wait, what was I blogging about? Gotta go….