February 21, 2010
Dear Lily,
Your first adventure to Las Cruces has begun. Right now it is Monday afternoon and you are sleeping in your mom’s arms in our living room while your mom talks to your dad and Grandma is working on her laptop.
That is not how it started though.
For the last week your grandma & I have been saying to each other “Lily is coming” then we would get this silly grin on our faces. It was last Saturday that we also said to each other “Lily is coming. Boy we have got to clean this house.” So…. the great cleaning began. I found dust bunnies (you will have to ask your mom what they are) that had multiplied into colonies. I managed to gain the upper hand. Cat hair had to be removed from their favorite chairs; the floors were swept and mopped and the dust was moved around. And that was just in the living room / dining room / kitchen area. The rest of the cleanup went well and now Lily because of your visit we have a clean house. Our friend Krissy from church got us a car seat for you and showed us how to use it so I guess we were now ready.
The cleanup happened Saturday because you were arriving on Sunday. On Sunday after church grandma & I got into the car and headed to Albuquerque to meet you and your mom at the airport. It felt good to get on the road again. Well your mom called us and first told us your airplane was delayed. Then the word from your mom was that your flight was cancelled. She told us later that when she heard this news she was feeding you. She knew she had to get another seat on a different plane but that she would have to go to a different ticketing desk to do so. So… she grabbed you in one hand, all her junk (your bottles, etc.) in the other hand and took off running. It must have been something exciting to see. I wonder what the other travelers thought. While you & your mom were running through the airport your grandma & I were getting closer to the airport. Well Lily we all finally got together. Instead of 4:30pm we finally got to see you at 7:30pm. We were so happy to see you & your mom again. We were finally together.
I wish I could say that was it but not yet. It isn’t easy traveling with a baby and now we had a 3.5 hour drive ahead of us to get home and get to bed. Since it was late we needed to get dinner so we found a place. We ate & talked all the while people walking by stopped to ask how old you were and to say you were just so cute.
On the way to our home you sat in your seat and watched as the world rolled by. Of course it was dark and you were in the back seat pretty much covered up and couldn’t see much but your eyes were open anyway. Once in a while you wanted your pacy (pacifier) and once plugged in you settled right down. Nothing much happened on the way. We stopped a time or two to switch drivers but otherwise kept right on going. By the time we got home it was after midnight and everyone was pooped.
Well your mom & grandmother got you changed, fed, burped and finally into your room. You were in our home at last. Wow!
On Monday, your first full day, I got a chance to babysit you. I was excited but a little nervous. It has been over 25 years since I have taken care of a baby. Your mom gave me instructions so I was ready. Changing a diaper, feeding and burping was pretty easy. It was when you got fussy that I got fussy. Now what? Did you need another diaper change? It couldn’t be that soon after your last change could it? I was pretty much out of words of comfort and beside you are only 8 weeks old so words of comfort were not going to do it. So I buzzed, bounced, stuffed your pacy, just anything I could think of. Finally after about 3 hours of moving you around from room to room and trying just everything I could think of when you fussed I woke up your mom and put you in her arms and of course you settled right down. It turned out that you were hungry again.
So goes your visit. It is so good having you and your mom here at our house. I have taken a number of pictures and videos of your every movement. You are so loved.
I’ll write later Lily.
We love you.
Grandpa J (aka – Grandpa TBone)
