Grab a Little Sadie-Love

Here are a couple of Sadie in the bath. She's a mermaid, just like her sister, Amy!



Daddy had to carry Sadie AND a hamper full of (clean!) laundry upstairs last night. There's only one way to do it if you want to make one trip!

Be sure to scroll down and see the other girls in their latest adventure!

Water Babies

Today Gramma P and I took the girls to one of our city's spraygrounds to cool off. Sadie was not happy to have her toes in the water, but the other three had a blast. I took some great pictures using the setting on my camera that's called "Use for action shots of children in bright light".

Take a look:












Gina

Men's Room Adventure

A few months ago, we had a chance to visit with my brother for a short time as he was on his way from Portland to Pendleton. We loaded up the kids, diaper bags, snacks, portable DVD players, and anything else we thought we might need and headed down to P-Town for the day.

After an enjoyable reunion, dinner, and trip to the carousel at the mall (which only runs on the weekends, and this was a Thursday), we decided that the next best thing would be to ride the escalators at Target and let the girls run around a little.

Fun ensued, interrupted by Lucy exclaiming, "I have to go to the bathroom!" We rushed downstairs to the only womens bathroom in the store to find it closed for cleaning. Not just a sign on the door--the cleaning cart was blocking the entrance. What's a mom to do?

You guessed it: into the men's room we go! I was very polite and gave plenty of warning: "Anybody in here?" (pause to listen) "Okay, I'm coming in with a 5 year-old, 4 year-old, and a baby. Speak now, or zip it up, cause we're coming in!" And we rushed in there like we were on fire.

To those who've never ventured into the hallowed place that is the men's restroom, I have two observations: First, there are a lot more places for men to pee than for women. Why is this? Women by nature pee longer and more often than men, and I'm not even considering the elderly, the pregnant, or the ones who drink too much water. Shouldn't we have twice as many toilets as the boys? Second, do men really need urinals? They can accomplish the same task with a toilet, so why not just put in all toilets, and make the bathrooms unisex? (Other than the fact that this goes against tradition and social etiquette.)

But I digress. I showed Lucy to the stall, with the admonishment to hurry up. Sadie was asleep in the front pack--no worries there--and I told my niece that her eyes better be looking at my shoes at all times or else. I was facing the far wall, my back to the door.

The door opens and I say, "We'll be right out, my little girl had to go, and the women's room was closed." "No problem." is the response and the door closes again. A few seconds later, the door opens again, and I launch into my previous explanation. I did get a response, although it wasn't what I thought it would be. I hear four footsteps, a zipper being unzipped, and the sound of a steady stream hitting porcelain. First of all--EWW. Second, how am I going to get out of here if Lucy gets done before he does?

Alas, I needn't have worried. Before I knew it, the zipper was zipped up, and the guy left--without washing his hands.

I got the COOLEST gift for Mother's Day from my hubby and kids.

Check it out:

It has 1 gear, and it brakes by pushing the pedals backwards (it's like a kids bike for adults). And the helmet that is being picked up today matches. Love it!

Now all I need is a little dry weather, and I'll be off!

More soon.

Gina

So, I did it. I bought a Bumbo chair for Sadie. And I paid full price. My mom even offered to buy the tray (Thanks, Mom!). I hate trendy baby gear. With a passion. I can hardly set the baby in the battery-powered vibrating/aquarium bouncy seat (complete with alternating lights, and 5 different options for sounds) without experiencing a full body shiver. It's not because I think babies should be held all the time. But whatever happened to putting the baby on the floor with a couple of rattles and letting her entertain herself for 10 minutes?

I'll tell you what happened: older sisters. Not two seconds goes by without Lucy, Amy, or Aiyanna (my niece), bothering Sadie. She can't sit in the swing without being pushed by the others--all at the same time. She can't lay on the floor without the older three crowding her in. And the kicker is: Sadie LOVES it. She loves the attention so much that when they're off doing their own thing, she can't stand to be alone. So she cries and even gets the tears going. It's tragic.

I love to hold Sadie. But there are certain things one just cannot do with a baby on one's hip. So when Gramma headed out to Target this morning, I gave her my debit card and PIN and showed her a picture of what I wanted. The Bumbo made it home, and I explained to the three little mamas, "When Sadie is in this chair, NO ONE is to bother her. You can play with her and feed her and make her smile all you want, as long as she's not in this seat. And don't put your butts in it either. Got it?" Wide-eyed nods all around.

And Sadie played happily for 15 minutes...all by herself. I hate to admit it, but I think I'm glad I bought a Bumbo.