It was a not very subtle reminder that babies are for the young.
Times being what they are, our church has instituted a policy of having a company perform background check screenings on all volunteers who will work with children or youth. The company has a good many policies it requires, including specific procedures for reporting a problem with a particular child. It also requires that any time children are being watched on church grounds by someone besides the parents, the person doing the watching has to have been screened.
Because i was one of the first screened, i am considered one of the few people available to babysit for the Sunday evening and Thursday evening events they sometimes have. Yesterday, i watched Di and Dani, and was reminded why young children belong with young parents.
These are two very sweet but very, very active young ladies. Both resist naps, even Dani at only 18 months will often refuse to rest during the day. Di is used to getting her own way, and to grabbing anything Dani has that she wants.
There were several discussions with Di over the course of the evening about how we don't always get what we want. It turns out, also, that yes, i still understand "kiddish" and got the few sentences Dani has.
As long as i kept them busy, coloring, dancing, playing with the puppets, rolling and unrolling the rug, getting out the vacuum for the rug, puzzles, running, jumping, and otherwise occupied and distracted, we did well. Di tried to pitch one fit, which i nipped right away. She seemed very surprised not to get what she wanted, and was then game for another game.
We crammed a lot of activity into about an hour and 45 minutes.
It was fun, and tiring. A good reminder of what i had to deal with back in the day. Probably i will be doing a good bit of this kind of thing in the future, since i have been screened and deemed suitable. Yes, some women my age feel the urge to have little ones around again and wish for grandkids. For me, it will keep me thankful that i don't have little ones to deal with full time now. They are fun to visit, but i wouldn't want to live there any more.
Today is:
Commemoration of Sen no Rikyu -- Japan (influential master in The Way of Tea)
Defy Death Today Day
Hot Tub Day -- because we all need one!
Invasion of Loaming Shores Beyond the Certain Sea Anniversary -- Fairy Calendar
Khordad Sal (Birth of the Prophet Zarathushtra) -- Zoroastrianism (Fasli Calendar)
National Black Forest Cake Day
Respect Your Cat Day
Sacrifice At the Tombs -- Ancient Roman Calendar
Serfs Emancipation Day -- Tibet
Seward's Day -- Alaska, US
Something on a Stick Day
Teachers' Day -- Czech Republic; Slovakia
Weed Appreciation Day (for those of us with black thumbs, since this is all we can grow)
Birthdays Today:
Julia Stiles, 1981
Annie Wersching, 1977
Scott Mills, 1974
Juliandra Gillen, 1971
Vince Vaughn, 1970
Reba McEntire, 1955
Dianne Wiest, 1948
Ken Howard, 1944
Dirk Bogarde, 1921
August Anheuser Busch, Jr., 1899
Maxim Gorky, 1868
Frederich Pabst, 1836
St. Teresa of Avila, 1515
Today in History:
Roman Emperor Pertinax is assassinated by Praetorian Guards, who then sell the throne in an auction to Didius Julianus, 193
Viking raiders sack Paris, who leave in exchange for a huge ransom, 845
The origin of the Fasli Era in India, 1556
Juan Bautista de Anza finds the site for the Presidio of San Francisco, 1776
Nathaniel Briggs of NH patents a washing machine, 1797
Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second asteroid known to man, 1802
The US Salvation Army is officially organized, 1885
Henri Fabre becomes the first person to fly a seaplane, 1910
Jews are expelled from Tel Aviv & Jaffa by Turkish authorities, 1917
Constantinople and Angora change their names to Istanbul and Ankara, 1930
The McGill français movement protest occurs, the second largest protest in Montreal's history, 1969
Operators of Three Mile Island's Unit 2 nuclear reactor outside of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania fail to recognize that a relief valve in the primary coolant system has stuck open, leading to a partial meltdown, 1979
In South Africa, Zulus and African National Congress supporters battle in central Johannesburg, resulting in 18 deaths, 1994
The 2005 Sumatran earthquake rocks Indonesia, and at magnitude 8.7 is the second strongest earthquake since 1965, 2005
Caturday Saturday
1 hour ago
How true this is...Sweetie and I were discussing this recently with the advent of our new puppy...that puppies are mostly for the young, too! But, children! They are definitely for the young. I cannot fathom how folks 50+ even consider the attempt -- at fulltime childrearing, that is. I guarantee that those of that...ahem...maturity level have HELP in doing so! More power to 'em. (Not for me either, Mimi!)
ReplyDeleteAlso meant to tell you to wish Bigger Girl a very happy belated b'day from me! I wish her well for the future...she is my kinda' gal! (so is her momma! ;-) )
ReplyDeleteAnd the taxes, I send you sympathy. I finished a bit earlier this year than usual, so I'm thankful for that. I know what you're going through. Hang in!
Hoping for more adoptions, too. The wild momma that has been visiting our barn has had her babies -- somewhere in the vicinity/wooded area -- around March 15 or so, best I can tell from when I last saw her with huge belly and subsequent sightings. Not sure how this will play out ...stay tuned.
Pony
Dear PonyGirl,
ReplyDeleteYes, i can see how puppies are for the young, too.
Thanks for the good wishes, i'll pass them on to Bigger Girl.
Hope you catch those babies while they are young enough to socialize and adopt out.
I'm going to do my best, but it's all up to momma cat and how soon she makes them "available" to me. I don't even know where they are. And momma is wild as the wind. It will all be serendipitous.
ReplyDelete