Big news.…

 

Things are different in a household with a baby, two working parents, and two dogs than they are in Grandma and Grandpa’s house! We have certainly had our moments of adventure over the last 48 hours. Forget keeping up with the Jones… we need to be able to keep up with the Britton’s!

 

Grandpa is on vacation… that usually means sleeping in, lounging around, piddling with a project, doing a little genealogy – you get the idea.  Wrong- that is what vacation was like before becoming a Grandpa!  Now Grandpa needs to be up early so he can spend time with “little miss” and then be sure to save some time to take the grand dog (or the monster as some of us call her) out to the yard to play fetch with a stick (47 times a day if she had her way), then drop off and pick up mommy and daddy at the bus in the next town so they can go to work, then Grandpa repacks a bag and heads from NJ to RI with daddy who has a meeting to attend. Then back for snuggles and kisses, followed by pictures and playing with toys.  Grandpa is having a great vacation!  

 

I am so glad he invited me to come along! And that “mommy and daddy” treated me to fly with him!  

 

While Grandpa is away with Aria’s daddy overnight, Aria’s mommy and I are here at home.  Her mommy goes to work and grandma has had the chance to babysit.  I am on day 3 and I think I am getting a routine down….lol!  I think I’ve still got it! I can handle the baby spoon – grandpa handles the bottles. I didn’t do so well yesterday on the bottle without him…. we had a leak and both Aria and Grandma had to change clothes.  We both can still do the diapers and I can hypnotize”her highness” to sleep with books, songs and rocking.  We have breakfast and lunch and two naps in by the time mommy and daddy get home.  I am proud of myself … it has been over 20 years since I have done this!

 

Now… there are some glitches.

 

Like… picking out clothes.  Wow, I am out of practice with that! Mommy does this best – she dresses our little fashionista to the nine’s  – me?  I am excited that I find a top and a bottom that seem to go together!  I can’t figure out the hat or “head decoration” yet!  

 

Then there is the monster….

 

I mean the dog.  Actually, there are two dogs in this household. One older and very tiny – Skye.  One younger and very big – Bailey.  They love each other. They are sisters. And they also fight like sisters at times. They are trained to go outside without a fence and without a leash.  Over time, they have learned to listen to other family member and come in when called.  

 

 

 

 

Except…. when there is a squirrel.  

 

Yesterday, as I let Bailey out the back door… down the deck steps she flies, and faster than a speeding bullet down the embankment to the yard,  and chases a squirrel up a tree…. three yards away!  Grandma, holding the baby, yells for her to return which  of course, she ignores.  Grandma, much more sternly, yells for the dog again.. this time she looks at me across the yards as if to say “What is your problem woman?  Can’t you see I have a squirrel in the tree here?” Then she turns her back to me…. watching her new toy in the tree.

 

Well – this grandma and her bad knees, cannot climb down the deck stairs, down the embankment into the yard holding the baby- so I have to make a decision.

 

Baby or dog?  Baby or dog?

 

I know you are all glad to know I choose the safety of the baby over the dog… so I head into the house, strap the baby in the stroller and push her to the deck.  THEN – down the steps, down the embankment, to the yard… all the time yelling at this dog to get back in the house!  (Did I mention that the yard she is in is owned by a guy who randomly sets traps for the wild life, ie  skunks, possums, cats, etc, and when he catches something, he then leaves it in the trap to die.  Yeah… currently there is a skunk in said trap.  I don’t need the dog finding either the skunk or another trap!)

 

Finally, she gives up on the squirrel and runs pell mell toward me and up the stairs, to the now crying baby who doesn’t understand where we have all disappeared to.  The little dog is watching the show we are all putting on … laughing to herself that “sister” has gotten in trouble again! We get back inside, I issue my lecture to the monster, and settle baby down to play. Next thing I know, the monster is running full speed ahead through the house.  

 

This is NEVER a good sign….

 

Strap baby back in…. go to find the dog… she is on the back porch with her treasure.  A confiscated fabric baby toy.  Chewing vigorously on it – she is so proud!!!!  I am NOT a happy Grandma!!  I demand that she give it up – she smiles and chews harder and decides to swallow her new toy!

 

 

UMMMMM…. then she realizes she cannot swallow it. And she cannot NOT swallow it.

 

HELP!!!! I AM CHOKING!!!!!

 

 

Please realize that this dog is an Old English Bulldog and that means she has a massive mouth, jaws and teeth. And slobber… I mean gobs of slobber. She could bite your arm off, should she choose to do so.  However, I know that our son has raised her, like we have raised all of our dogs no matter the size, to trust us enough that we can always put our hands in their mouths.  She is panicked, AS AM I, baby is crying because she knows something is wrong – so I grab her jowls, reach in and PULL this toy out of her throat.  The amount of slime on this toy is indescribable.  The relief on her face and mine is also indescribable.

 

Today, let’s just watch cartoons or something…… I am over the squirrels and toys.