On-Call Grandpa

I woke first around 430am to the coo of Olivia. I went down and made a bottle just in case she was ready to eat. But by the time I returned ustairs her sobbing had stopped and she was apparently back asleep. I didn’t dare open the door and enter her room. Minutes later sleep befell me once more. I stayed that way until almost 7:45am when Mindy got up to fetch and feed Olivia for real. I laid there awake for about fifteen minutes while the kids & Mindy toiled with Olivia downstairs. Not wanting to sleep too much of the morning away, I leaped to my feet a little after 8am ready to get my day underway.

Mindy was busy feeding Olivia some cereal and fruit, and had the coffee ready for the go. I choked down a vitamin and then began my exercise routine. It wasn’t too long before Ykraps and I were heading out the door for our morning walk. It was a raw, chilly morning – one I would gladly have traded away for something more seasonal. It was in the mid 30’s, gray, and breezy. What’s worse, the forecast called for rain and temperatures struggling to reach 42 degrees. Not what you’d expect for mid-April.

If there was and upside, it was the fact that I was on-call and in turn had few expectations of myself around the house. Instead, I would be working and keeping an eye on the kids while Mindy went shopping with her mother. Yard work would be delayed for yet another week.

After getting involved in a couple work related matters I finally got myself in a position where I could squeeze in my run. I left for my run around 9:45am. When I returned Mindy had Olivia sleeping in her room and had our breakfast about ready. Very efficient! We were having pancakes and bacon.

Mindy was ready to leave for shopping shortly after breakfast. She wanted to meet her mother at Target around 11am. I simply asked that she assist with getting the kitchen in order before leaving since I had so much on my plate (work issues, Olivia, and the kids). She left around 11:15am. Ashley called just before that to see if I wanted her to come fetch Olivia right away. I didn’t. I was looking forward to spending a little time with her.

I went and got Olivia from her bed around 11:45am and fed her lunch. I fed her peas then some fruit. She ate some of both but wasn’t too excited about the peas. The fruit, I could tell, struck a cord with her. She ate and then happily played with Jacob & Bella for an hour or two while I worked. Ashley called around 1:30pm and said she’d be over to pick her up in the next hour. Around 2pm I gave her a bottle. She sucked it down.

Ashley and Brittany showed up about the time Mindy got home from shopping. We unloaded groceries, said goodbye to Olivia, and then Mindy and the kids left for her mom’s. They were gone for about two hours. I worked some more. They returned home around 4:30pm and I went up and took a much needed shower. As Bella would say, I smelt like running.

We decided that Chipotle’s sounded good for dinner. I flew & bought. I was back by 5:45pm. I had a steak fajita burrito. Mindy had a chicken bowl. The kids ate some of the nacho chips and guacamole. After dinner, you guessed it, more work for me. I worked while Mindy bathed the kids. I got a fire going too. It was a raw rainy evening. We even got another dose of hail during the early evening hours. After the kids were in bed I poured a Jack & Coke. It was very satisfying. Mindy had a glass of wine. We hung out by the fire and talked the evening away. Mindy went to bed around 10pm. I stayed up determined to watch Mad TV and Saturday Night Live. I poured another Jack & Coke. I watched Mad TV until 11:30pm when SNL came on. Work called and gave me a heads up on an ongoing issue. I watched SNL until midnight. I must have fallen asleep, though. Next thing I knew it was 1am. I went to bed.