new baby

Somebody needs a nap.

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‘There’s a reason people have babies when they’re young.’

Well, except for Yours Truly. I wasn’t all that young when I had The Child. I was pushing forty. An age which now, in my grandmotherly dotage, seems positively dewy.

Her Childness, when she was about Mr. Baby’s age, and I was relatively young(ish)

I haven’t posted for a while because, well, I’m exhausted. Pleasantly exhausted, but still. The Child and Mr. Baby and, eventually, the SIL, and, a bit later, our nephew’s family (including three little girls) were all here for an extended visit that began in mid-May and lasted till after Memorial Day.

Mr. Baby as the cousins’ Center of Attention

The Child, bless her brave little heart, came all on her own with Mr. Baby. Of course, back in the day I flew solo with her too, clutching a baby carrier and a diaper bag when she was three months old to visit her Grandma and Grandpa. But that’s all I carried. These days, babies need gear. Lots of gear. When I met The Child/Mom at her digs (no surprise we couldn’t put them up in the Ken & Barbie House) she was toting — in addition to His Babyness — a duffel about the size of a Volkswagen and a backpack as tall as me, which is two inches shorter than I used to be, but still. (See my thoughts on babies and gear here.)

Mr. Baby birdwatching from the comfort of his bouncy chair, which was supplied by Yours Truly, though it could have fit in that backpack

During the time in New York, we went to the Central Park Zoo, the Museum of Natural History and a baby shower. We dined out several times and even dodged a parade.

Saturday in the park with doting grandparents

Digging the gems at the Museum of NH

In between bouts of Family Fun, I was able to brush up on my babysitting skills, dealing with (in ascending order of difficulty) squirmy limbs while jammie-dressing, teething squalls and poopy diapers too numerous to mention. (Well, I will mention the poopy diaper I managed mid-poop, for which I deserve extra credit.)

Checking out the ocean for the first time. (He thought it was too cold; he was right) The pool, however, was a big hit. (See video, below)

Shooting pool with Grampa and Cousin Alex

I must have passed muster with my babysitting skills because I’ve been asked to provide them again in a couple of weeks. I am going to watch Mr. Baby while The Kids go to a wedding. St. Louis, here I come!

How we “visit” in between visits. (Yes, that’s a big ole crumb stuck between Dude Man’s front teeth)

I could go on and on — I’ve got ten days’ worth of oversharing I could subject you to (!) but I have to wrap things up and get back to Normal Life, such that it is. I got so distracted by the visit that I forgot to do Wordle and broke a 99-day streak. *Sigh* Now that’s exhaustion.

New York City. June 2025

Forgive me for not posting in a while.

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‘I’ve been a bit, well, distracted.’

I was on the phone with a friend the other day (remember phone calls? remember friends?) when she said, “Gosh, you haven’t posted a story in a while!” Which is how I knew that A) She was, in fact, a friend, and a very good one at that, and B) that gosh, I haven’t posted a story in a while.

Well, I have a very good excuse. I mean, besides the fact that Dude Man and I were in Australia for five weeks. (That’s right, folks — five weeks. Four in Australia, plus one in Tasmania.)

Five weeks, people. Five weeks. But we sure covered a lot of ground. (And air)

My excuse? His name is Alexander Whitmore Leakos, and he was born on October 5, when we were roaming Little Desert National Park somewhere on the Southern half of the Australian continent. The New Parents were in San Francisco. (In spite of the time difference — it was 5:00 AM for us and noon the previous day for them — we were able to participate in a very satisfying Facetime call.)

The photo that greeted us at 5 AM

Needless to say, Dude Man and I are thrilled beyond measure to be grandparents. As I told The Child, “Now I can die; I have fulfilled my biological imperative. My genetic material (such as it is) has been passed on.”

My genetic material (or some of it, anyway) made flesh (fresh flesh, at that)

Of course, there isn’t much of my genetic material that’s discernible in this tiny person. This grandkid (shorthand for whom is to be GK) bears an uncanny resemblance to his father. It’s like someone took the SIL and put him in the dryer–on high.

I rest my case. All that baby needs is a teensy little beard

But who knows? Maybe he’s inherited my sparkling wit and/or engagingly hilarious personality. Heaven knows I’m glad he did not get my Swedish Head. (In case you don’t have one, and/or don’t know what the heck I’m talking about, read “What’s that in the road — a head?”.)

Baby doing his Thinker Thing. Note nicely-shaped noggin

Anyway. One of the first things The Child did (after our Facetime, that is) is invite us to join a shared photo album, where she’s been posting photos of our little GK practically every day. I’ll shut up and share a few:

Baby meets Grampa Wayne

Baby meets Uncle Scott (make that great-uncle) and Susan the Great

Baby meets Halloween. We weren’t there for this, but they still had the Mama, Papa and Baby Bear costumes

And one of the first things we did after we got back from Australia — well, actually it was the first thing we did — was visit all three of them in San Francisco. Quite literally it was the first thing. We got on a plane in Hobart, Tasmania, at 6:00 AM, then flew 14-some hours to SF, landing at 6:30 AM and Lyfting our way to their Haight-Ashbury pad in short order.

Baby goes out to dinner

More about our visit — oh, and some stuff about Australia too — when I can catch my breath. And when I can stop scrolling through that shared album.

Can’t resist sharing just this one more. Till next time!

Amagansett, New York. November 2024