Babysitting

Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol 1 p. 560

207.0 miles

c-c-cold!

 

371 recordings of 35 types, 41 old CPD, 5 old SVU. 24% clear, but that will change with Big Cat Week and babysitting Padreic!

Monday I swept the leaves off the back porch, and the palm seeds in front, but really, why bother? Every time I sweep it up, more fall and it looks just the same. Plus this week the wind blew all the leaves off the garden and out of the yard onto my back porch. I had to sweep a path out.

I went really early to Supercuts for a much-needed haircut. The young man was quick and did a good job, though not quite as short as I would have liked. It still looks a LOT better. Then I made a quick stop at Emigh Hardware to ask where the fuses are. She showed me, in the plug. Mind you, when I got home I still had a hard time opening the plug, so went online. Oh, it slides! So I tried various permutations to replace the fuse, and nothing worked. Apparently it's the wire itself. Now I have a case for the tree, but I believe I'll get a different tree next year saving all these fuses and bulbs. In fact, I'll try to get next year's on the 26th, since as I say, I have a case. I wound up turning the tree so the lit string is in front. It looks OK.

 

The cleaners were early, and I'd just finished the bonus disc of Doc Martin.

 

They were done early enough that I decided to go to the movies, and saw "The Man Who Invented Christmas." It was a pleasure to see Ian MacNeice playing an entirely different part. There was also someone else from Doc Martin, though not a main character like Bert Large. I enjoyed the movie.

 

Tuesday was babysitting. Padreic was interested in all the toys I brought out. When I went to change his diaper I managed to get poop on the floor. Later, he was playing with the enormous number of toys I brought out and said "I found all the tools." I am reminded of Vince at this age when we'd given him a tool bench... "this 'ittle boy is workin'!"

 

I put batteries into the talking snowman and while I was about it, did the same for the singing snowmen. I could learn to regret that!
 

 

(click for the video.) 

 

He was getting along fine with Pharaoh (once the dog calmed down) but then the dog barked at someone and Padreic decided he was afraid of him. So after I'd read "10 Little Toddlers" three times to him I put him down with the book and he cried and "cried." The quotes are for when he was faking it. So I put him down on the couch for a nap. After a few quiet minutes he was fine.

 

We had macaroni and cheese for lunch and Padreic fell asleep on the way home. We went to fetch the school kids. Joanna had had a terrible day (B. had forgotten her meds). She passed it on with her rhapsodizing about Grandma coming to Christmas in the Park (which was wrong but I had a fit first) "Grandma sees you more than I do." "It's because we love her so much." Well, that puts me in MY place. Vince told me off about that.

 

Wednesday was St. Nicholas Day. I woke up sad, partly because of the whole Grandma thing and mostly because of St. Nicholas Day, but then Bernadette brought me a puzzle when she brought Padreic over.

 

My Facebook post:

Bernadette had an old tent she wanted me to take to Loaves and Fishes. I had it in the car, thinking I would add the bag of motel toiletries and take it in tomorrow. But I was a bit faster with Padreic today than I thought I would be, and would be driving right past L&F, so even though the motel soaps weren't with me, I decided to drop off the tent. Great timing. We got to the Crocker Art Museum just as it opened, for Wee Wednesday. We went to the Tot room, which Padreic loves, and I wondered if he'd be OK to leave it for the Wee Wednesday program. He was perfect, plopped right down on a mat for the story, which was a book about "lines." Then we walked on lines, a straight line, a curved line, a zigzag line. And on up to the Diebenkorn exhibit to plop down on another mat and look at lines in the painting. Padreic didn't contribute, but he took everything in, and when it was time for the activity he carefully covered the zigzag line on his paper with plastic bugs, and did a second one with gems. I was really impressed with him, for his first time. It could have gone either way, and I'd have tried again in a month if he wasn't ready. Afterwards we went to the WingDings exhibit, which is for the littles. He got too tired going back to the car (he's still limping a little, and it's hard for him) and slept going home (for the second day in a row.)

 

 

We all stopped at the park after school because I usually rush past it so I can read to the kids and get home before the bad traffic, but since I was waiting around for Rob to get home after work, I had time. Padreic got very tired again. Anyway, a satisfactory day.

 

Joanna still had a sad day, and playing in the park didn't help much. They ran ahead of me, and I'd forgotten to lock the door. Oh, dear. I read them another chapter of "Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill." Later, after her homework was done, Joanna was buried in "The Secret Garden", no pun intended. That book was what she got from St. Nicholas.

 

And I drove home with the carseat! I have been coming up Watt, long trip, but probably better than the freeway. I don't get home till dark.

 

I realized that I didn't have the book "Little Women", which was always one of my favorites, so I ordered it, So now reading:

Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; Pepys' Diary; Embarrassments by PJ Nel; Shattered, Jonathan Allen & Amie Parnes; The Little World of Don Camillo, Giovanni Guareschi; Little Women, Louisa May Alcott; and The Golden Spiders, Rex Stout. (I've gotten up to 1953.)

 

I printed up my Passport Renewal Form. Then I made mistakes (with my own cell phone number!) on the second page.

 

Fishdom finally opened a new aquarium but I had to wait to play a couple of days till the "levels" came up, to get the decorations. Once more I've played beyond where they are, so stopping until it's worth it to me to play. I imagine I'll have Christmas decorations pretty soon.