An Incredibly Long Day

Today was one of the longest days in the history of Sadie's life.  When we got to the home today, Hoho, Sadie's Great Grandma on Grumpa's side, wasn't doing very well.  We had only planned on a quick trip to Redding to visit her, with a stop at Costco for Nani and Grumpa to pick up food for church, but the plan began to change after less than five minutes in town.  AMR came to pick Hoho up and take her to the hospital and we followed the ambulance over in our car.  

When they took Hoho in to get tests we headed over to a nearby Round Table for a quick lunch.  When I saw the table that Grumpa had picked, I was resigned to a rowdy lunch.  Sadie's high chair was within two feet of another baby, in another high chair.  I had visions of Sadie squealing uncontrollably for an entire meal (her preferred method of communicating with other babies).  I got Sadie strapped in to her chair just as Nani got back to the table with the plates.  What happened next went something like this. 

Mom at the other table: "Oh, what a cute baby.  How old is she?"

Nani: "She'll be eight months old tomorrow.  How old is your baby?" 

Other Mom:  "She'll be a year this month."

Nani: "Sadie's really tall for her age." (this has become the normal tidbit added to Sadie's age because she is usually taller than babies that are quite a bit older, and because when we say her age there's usually a look of disbelief.)

Other Mom:  "Well Natasza is really tall too."  (silence.  I hadn't really thought of the Sadie being tall as being a competitive thing until that moment.  Apparently it is.) 

It also seemed like a kind of funny thing to say because Sadie looked a lot bigger than the other baby and they were sitting right next to each other.  But it got even stranger.  We were both getting up to leave at about the same time and the other mom brought the baby over and said "see, stand her up on the table next to Tasza."  And we did.  And Sadie had a good inch on her.  There was a moment of silence before the other mom said "oh wow.  They're the same height."  

Nani, Sadie and I spent the rest of the time waiting for Grumpa and Hoho at Turtle Bay (you can really only spend so much time waiting around at a hospital with a baby.  We did wait in the main waiting room instead of the ER waiting room where the sick people are).  Sadie loves the fish more than ever, particularly a brown and gold trout with little turquoise splotches, and kept trying to grab them through the glass.  She was also taken with a giant, hot pink Marilyn Monroe painting by Andy Warhol (she wouldn't take her eyes off of it) in the gallery.  We played for a little while on the slide on the playground and then went over to check out the little grey fox in the animal area.  He was playing with a stuffed white and hot pink tiger.  Then it was back to hospital.  

We finally got home at about 6:30 and Sadie has finally fallen asleep.  Goodnight!  I think she should sleep well tonight.  

Ducks, Foxes and Porcupines: Adventures in Nor Cal

We had a breakthrough tonight at bath time.  I'd like to say that I knew that this day would come, but I have to admit that I was secretly afraid that Sadie's stubbornness would persist and that she would, after having decided that she hated books at the ripe old age of five months, go on hating books for the rest of her life (all because they aren't edible).  

Tonight all of the rubber ducks jumped into the tub with Sadie and I started to read Goodnight Boston to her.  She didn't look away!  After the first page she got a little smile on her face.  When we got to the part about the Make Way for Ducklings statue she started to get a little distracted, so I quacked like a duck.  Apparently this was the funniest thing that had happened all day (and we had a big day) and she looked at the book again.  

I knew what I had to do.  Whenever she got bored with a story, I would quack and she would look at the book and start to smile.  Any book with quacking in it has to be funny!

We made it through two entire stories!  That's a record!

Before we had tons of fun with the ducks in the tub, we went to Redding this morning for my doctor's appointment.  It was a beautiful day and the car thermometer said that it was seventy-five degrees when we headed home.  Nani came along since Paul is back at school, and sat with Sadie in the waiting room.  She was shocked when, after about fifteen minutes, I was ready to go.  The reason for the quick turn around time?  

When the nurse took me back into the exam room and took my blood pressure it was 90 over 58.  Apparently she thought that I was about to keel over, right there in the exam room, although I told her I was fine.  Within two minutes the doctor was in the room, listening to my heart (she agreed that nothing was wrong.  I just have very low blood pressure) and ten minutes later we were ready to go.  I've never been in and out of any doctor's office that fast.  

After finishing up all of our chores in Redding we stopped by Turtle Bay to play in the park before we started the long trek home.  Sadie saw a fox (you can barely see him in the first picture because of the glare on the glass... I think that she thought he was a cat.), an owl, a porcupine (he actually seemed to be her favorite) and a magpie.  

We went from the animals, to the playground where Sadie got to go on the swings (it was her first time on real swings!).  She insisted on sitting all the way forward, so that she was almost tipping over.  When we tried to show her how to sit back and hold on to the swing, she would glare and throw her weight forward again so that she could watch the ground.  

Swinging was fun, but I think that she had more fun watching Mommy and Grumpa swing, while she sat in her swing with Nani.  

From the playground we went back inside and looked at the fish.  You walk through a little tunnel that's dimly lit to get to the aquarium and Sadie's eyes were like saucers by the time we were through it.  She loved watching the fish and while I held her she pointed her little finger to make sure that we saw them too.  

To top off our big day Sadie started chicken today!  I can't say that it was a hit, although she ate every bite.  After each bite she would make a disgusted face and gag, before opening her mouth for more.  

Now it's time to call Daddy and go to bed.  We've gotten used to Daddy being home on weekends, after his long winter break.  I can't wait until summer break!