Up and Down Again

I had been hoping that I'd seen the last of the sore throat, but it came back again. And I can't tell whether it's due to an allergic reaction or a virus.

We had a wonderful Friday evening over at the M&D's, watching The Grandkid while they took a few hours off to try and remember each other's names. (We know how that is.)

It was gratifying to walk in the door and be greeted immediately by the sight of The Grandkid laughing and smiling as though we were the best thing that had happened all day long. And rushing back and forth in the living room from the back wall to the couch, throwing herself against it and erupting in new bouts of laughter each time. She was either very happy to see us, or she had completely gone insane as we were walking in the door.

But we had to get to Brass Tacks right away because it was dinnertime and that has traditionally been a difficult time for her, as she has the attention span of a gnat and usually performs her fly-bys to grab a handful of food-mass before jetting off to places unknown (but thankfully constrained) while we just stand around and wonder how in the e=mc2 she can convert such a small mass into such an overwhelming bundle of energy -- unless she is somehow changing the speed of light as we watch. We try to watch, but she's too fast for us.

The Parental Units took their cue and dashed out to Places Unknown (but hopefully quieter) while we hunkered down and attended to our duties. Cheryl started making dinner, the contents of which had been graciously provided by Deb; as the Designated Grandpa, I threw myself onto the floor and proceeded to go along with whatever crazy idea that The Grandkid came up with for our mutual amusement: we played with dolls, stuffed toys, old cell phones, cat toys, things attached to strings, strings attached to things, and couches which made lousy imitations of slides but made do in a pinch.

Then Grandma called out for some help, so we converted The Grandkid's little table into the Big Tower O' Fun which we pushed up against the counter so that she could help Grandma with dinner -- mostly by stealing some of it off the plate and eating it 'raw' (it was pre-cooked!) before it went into the pan with the rest of the goodies (rice, peas, keilbasa). Then when all that was done, we took the BTOF and converted it back into her little table and ate our dinner. Mostly. We ate, she just grabbed handfuls of keilbasa and stuffed her face with it.

Then it was time for her favorite activity, Bath Time! Which is when I remove any long-sleeved apparel and get ready to be completely soaked and sudsed, or at least make sure that she is. We played with the bath toys for about half an hour before, without any notice, she leaped out of the tub and ran straight for her dresser. Wait! I cried. Your towel! But it was too late. She had already pulled open her drawer and withdrawn the clothes she wished to wear post-bath, and was waiting patiently in front of her dresser with her arms stretched up so that I could lift her onto the changing table -- a first! -- and let her finish dressing. Because she likes doing things by herself.

Alas! her selection did not include a diaper, which at this early stage of her life is still a necessity. So, while distracting her with all sorts of grunting noises as if the business of dressing her for bed was a major effort, I surreptitiously inserted a diaper in-beneath her chosen garment and then let her finish 'dressing', after which I attempted to place her pajamas on top. What followed was a five-minute struggle to fit the PJs (which were obviously too small) onto the rapidly-growing child, which only ended when her frustration with the tight fit was overcome by her fascination with the zipper that sealed the deal.

At last, she was ready for bed. So we brushed teeth and read stories (at the same time) ... and then I made the tragic mistake of showing her videos on my phone. Of her. And she was totally smitten. So the next half-hour was spent sitting on the couch while she watched herself over and over and over again, laughing and saying her name aloud every time a video started again.

And when I finally had to close my phone because The Parents had come home and were ready to put their child to bed for real, she threw a fit for the first time ... because she wasn't ready to stop watching herself.

We made a hasty retreat and left her to the tender care of The Parents.

And when we got home, the full impact of the energy output it takes to amuse a child hit me like a ton of bricks.

I fell asleep in my chair.

And the next day, my throat and head were sore again, and it felt like last weekend all over again.