Sunday, September 20, 2009

Miko called at nine this morning wanting to know if we could babysit; he and Erin had a couple of non-kid friendly errands to run and it would just be easier to not cart them around, but fine if we couldn’t watch them. With no Saturday classes to get in the way and nothing on our schedule, we jumped at the chance to spend the day with the kids.

Char’s dad showed up at ten to take the bikes out (why Rachel has no problem with him riding, I don’t know, but she was in tears last weekend when she thought I was going to ride) and stayed for lunch (prompting a few “huh” moments when Toni said “Grandpa” and we both answered. He’s just used to answering to it, but it made Toni giggle so much he kept it up all afternoon.) When the baby had a massive diaper blowout, though, he suddenly had to go out to the garage to make sure he hadn’t parked the bikes too close to the lawn mower.

I have to admit, this was one of those afternoons that makes me think moving is going to be a good thing, as much as I haven’t felt like I wanted to. It’s such a long drive from Erin and Miko’s to here that we don’t get to babysit as much as we would like, and once we’re in the new house they’ll be three blocks over and we’ll be able to see the grandkids much more frequently.

As a complete aside, my sister (and I hope you’re reading this) really screwed herself over when she kicked Erin out. She’s missing out on every major moment her grandkids have, and she handed them over to me. I get to experience the sheer joy of Toni’s innate sweetness and Travis’s insane giggling fits. I get to be the one who hears “Grandpa” in both tears and happy squeals, and I get to be the one who gets the crayon scribble pictures and ribbon-tied puffs from their first haircuts. My sister has two incredible biological grandkids, and she’s missed it all and will miss it all. I don’t know if Erin will ever completely recover from it emotionally, but she has family who gives a damn, and Char has been able to help her wade through a lot of the feelings of being abandoned by her mother.

Totally aside from anything.

We spent the day playing with the kids, or watching them in the back yard playing with each other. Alex and Rachel humored us by playing Simon Says and Tag with Kevin and Toni, and even the dogs got it on it. There was a lot of laughter surrounding us today.

When Erin and Miko came back to pick up their kids, she pulled Char and I aside to tell us why they needed some time without an inquisitive little girl along for the ride. They needed to confirm something.



Sometime in May, I get to be a Grandpa all over again.

Now I want to move.

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