Lolo and Baba and Gamma

We had the pleasure of caring for every whim and fancy of our 2-year old granddaughter this past weekend. Lolo's dad was on a business trip and her mom had important classwork to do, so Lolo came to visit on Friday. Her mom went home on Saturday and came back on Tuesday to take her home. Four days, three nights of chattering, playing, reading, sleeping, bathing, eating, etc. My only feeling is "Exhilaraustion."

The highlights from Baba's point of view (yep, that's me!):

1) Lolo is babbling quite a bit, and it takes a while to figure some of the words out. She has a decent vocabulary, knows her colors and body parts, some numbers, some letters, and is always naming things.

2) The grandfather clock in the entryway. Every time it chimed, she would point at it and say "Kock." When it ended, she would say "aw dun" and make the "safe" sign. On the hour, she and I would count the chimes. She was puzzled by how it worked. We were afraid it would wake her up at night, but it didn't.

3) Her favorite games are "riding on Baba" and "chasing Baba." She's getting braver riding on my back - to the point of falling off a time or two. We chase through the house - with much laughter and giggles, especially when I catch her, toss her over my shoulder, hang her upside down and give her a tummy buzz.

4) When we go outside, we hide the balls in the weeds and pots, and she goes around collecting them. Then we look for interesting bugs and watch them do their thing. We sit on the wall and watch the cars and trucks go by on the street below - counting them and naming them "blue car" "white truck" and so on. We usually collect some flowers on our walks down the block and bring them home for Grandma.

5) We have a set of stacking blocks called Wedgits which are great. She stacks them nicely, naming the colors every time, and has started being creative in the stacking. Then a sweep of her hand and the blocks fly with a hearty laugh. And then we do it again.

6) Eating. She loves fruit and sweets. She picks the peanut butter out of the waffle holes at breakfast. She eats pretty well when we're out to lunch or dinner. We went to Rubio's for lunch on Monday and she had half a fish taco, half a quesadilla, chips with guacamole and sour cream, and most of the rice. Of course, that night at dinner she just picked at her food. Oh - ice cream is a big hit. Lolo and Baba really enjoy sharing a Cold Stone or Marble Slab treat. She picks out the M&Ms or choc chips - loves them.

7) Bath time is part of the nighttime ritual. She loves to investigate gravity and fluid dynamics by pouring water out of cups, investingating the drain, and squirting water from the fish mouths and frog bellies. I don't know who gets wetter. Then it's time to wash up, and she submerges all but her face to get the shampoo off her head. When she gets out, we dry off and then she runs naked through the house to find Grandma.

8) Night time is amazing. After the bath, diaper and nightie, and teeth-brushing, she gathers 3 or 4 books for reading. Gamma usually gets the reading duty, but Baba does his share. Then we say "it's night-night time" and she runs into the bedroom, lifts her amrs, we put her in the crib, and she lies down with her sleep buddies. Most nights we don't hear another sound until 6 or 7 in the morning. She woke up Sunday night at 3 AM, had a snack, and I rocked her for awhile and she went back down. She takes 1 to 2 hour naps in the early afternoon.

Needless to say, she is a delight, cute as a bug, smart and fun, always laughing and giggling, a pretty typical 2-year old.

We had a fun, happy and tiring three days with her. We can't wait to go visit her and her parents, or have them come visit again. But not for another week or two!