Long weekend

My weekend started on Tues last when I took off from work to cover Pequita's daycare, since our provider had to go out of town for a few days. Bliss! Temperate weather, time with the baby, and best of all, my sister came for a visit and brought 13-month-old Nephew along. Things were a bit hectic, as our house is not childproofed at all (= a death trap) and Nephew is walking, not to mention helpfully clearing all things (particularly anything breakable, sharp, or made of rusty metal) off the lower shelves and floors of our house. Pequita was completely enamored of him, and they got along well as long as Pequita was tossed aside when Nephew noticed that his mom was holding her and NOT HIM.

My sister and I spent some time locating and playing at local playgrounds - not something I gave much thought to before Pequita. Clearly, it was a much safer plan to send Nephew down big corkscrew slides all by himself than to let him wander into our bathroom, out of which he came happily rattling prescription bottles containing enough allergy medicine to keep his nose clear for a decade. Since Pequita was born in October and we live in the cold Northeast, we haven't had much opportunity to play outside. This is evidenced in her great love of grass - she can run her fingers over it ruffling the blades for much longer than I can tolerate sitting next to her. Luckily, the option of eathing it hasn't occured to her yet.

The first playground we visited (on the day we forgot all cameras) was small and had no swings (is that a real playground then, you ask? I'd vote no) but it had DUCKS! wandering around who would nibble food out of your hand. These were more interesting than the play equipment for many kids. Nephew was quite enchanted, Pequita was so overwhelmed by the whole experience that she mostly stared with rapt attention at whatever was in front of her. The second day we tried a different, bigger park, also by the lake, but it had swings to enjoy. I was pretty sure Pequita would love the little bucket swings, and she did. I had to stuff my coat and sling around her to keep her secure, as she was a little small still, but she quickly started laughing and chortling as I gently pushed her.

The merry-go-round was also a big hit with Nephew, and brought back all the memories I had of nausea at spinning in small circles. Blech - my sister accompanied Pequita around, as I started to turn green after only two or three circles. Pequita was less impressed with it than Nephew, but then maybe the ride loses something if you have to be clutched by your overall straps like a baby.

We have more playgrounds in our town that I shall have to explore on my own - it is proving to be as child friendly as I had thought when I chose to live here. It has some great playgrounds built by Bob Leathers that I can't wait to explore, but those are mostly in school playgrounds so we'll need to coordinate to miss the recess crowds. (Do elementary school kids even get recess any more?)

Sister and Nephew bolted town a couple days ahead of schedule since he started to rain snot from his nose and get a little fussy. He was cutting a new tooth and possibly coming down with a cold as well - my sister was justifiably nervous about being alone in the car with an already sick boy for the very long drive to get home. Leaving on Friday meant that he was sleepy and not feeling full-blown awful, and they made it home with little incident. I wish so very much that we lived closer, as meeting in the park or for coffee is a huge treat with my sister, and the cousins playing together is a delightful image.