Makes Sense Now

8:47 AM

I was loading Baby H into the car when her dress flipped up, revealing a bare baby bottom - no diaper, no pants, nothing. In that moment, several events from earlier in the day suddenly made sense.

8:13 AM

Wipeout city! How come there's a puddle of water on the floor over here by the sink? Getting Baby H dressed is an awful lot of work today. It's not any easier when Baby H keeps running around on the floor and wiping out. How is there a puddle over here, anyway? The shower's on the other side of the room.

8:05AM

Where's Baby H? Oh, there she is over in the corner, playing with a diaper. Where'd the diaper come from? I didn't think we kept any in our bedroom. Oh well. What's that spot on the rug? Either somebody spilled something, or the window air conditioner must have leaked something on the rug. Strange.

The Demise of a Toothbrush

Today's been a great day with Baby H. We took a field trip to Petsmart and the local library, then came home and she's been playing until we got ready to put her to bed. Then it happened.

Recently, she's had a penchant for brushing her teeth. This usually means finding her toothbrush and walking around chewing on it. However, when hers is put away, mine is also a good substitute. Since it's in a lower drawer in the bathroom, it's well within her reach.

While we were changing her in the bathroom tonight before putting her to bed, she wriggled away and grabbed my toothbrush, then squatted on the bath mat and started brushing her teeth. We just laughed at her and thought it was cute, until she barfed all over my toothbrush and the mat. The squash and turkey mash all over the brush pretty well ended my desire to use it again.

I think I've got one of the free ones you get from the dentist buried in the back of a drawer somewhere . . .

The "Man Purse"

I'm not really sure where this came from, but I certainly remember the first time my wife applied it to me. She was only joking about how much stuff I took with me when I was out with Baby H.

The contents:

• Diapers and wipes
• Food for both Baby H and me
  
• Juice for Baby H
• Antiseptic wipes
• Pacifier
• Bib
• Tylenol, sunscreen, and bug repellent
• Bike stuff – spare tube, multi-tool, 15mm wrench, ankle strap, u-lock
• Small notebook and pen
• Sharpie marker
• A couple of toys for Baby H
• Feeding spoon
• Sunglasses

Whenever I head out the door, I usually add my day planner and cell phone to the mix, and sometimes a book or two.

I think Mrs. H's biggest complaint is really the weight. With my u-lock and the juice in there, it gets pretty heavy, but Baby H and I get around by bike a lot during the summer, so it's a necessity.

Baby H says hi

There have been some spectacularly bad days already this summer with Baby H, but on the whole, we've been having a lot of fun, and things should improve in two weeks after I wrap up a contract and get back from a conference I'll be attending next week.

Pool time

Summer - that means a trip to look for an inflatable pool for Baby H to splash around in. We found one for the right price, and after sacrificing a few carpet scraps that I was storing in case of who-knows-what, we were set.

While I was inflating the pool, Baby H wasn't sure what exactly we were doing, so she kept her distance and just watched.

However, as soon as she realized that the floppy plastic was going to turn into a pool, she kept stepping in and out, over and over, even though there was no water in it. Once I began filling it, there was no keeping her out, even though the water was ice cold. She would climb in and stand totally still, then wave her arms and squeak until I'd lift her out to dry off. Twenty seconds later, she'd be back in again.

Unfortunately, stuff from the overhanging trees keeps falling into the pool, but it hasn't stopped our intrepid new swimmer!

Summer dresses

Baby H is showing off a new dress that came compliments of a recent trip to visit the grandparents. Both of her grandmothers love to shop for clothing for her! 

Breakfast

Breakfast for Mrs. and Baby H on a lazy Saturday morning. There's no need to rush things when the weather's beautiful and it's already been a busy week.

On the road with Baby H

I think it would be a stretch to say that the entire trip to visit the grandparents went this smoothly, but when it's good, it's good!

I've also been told I'm getting lazy with both the blog and sending out pictures to Hausmeister relatives, so I'll have to ramp things up over the next few days. We've got some great pictures to post, so keep checking back.

And so it begins again

Mrs. H and I have been thoroughly enjoying Baby H (now Toddler H) and have been discussing the ins and outs of having another. Because Mrs. H works, and because her last experience of working and being pregnant was so unpleasant, we've been thinking about adoption. Over the past several months, we've looked at a number of options, and today information arrived about another one - adopting a girl from China. I'm very excited about this, and look forward to seeing what the packet contains.

The mailman also brought me a book I'd ordered called "The Lost Daughters of China" that comes highly recommended for anyone thinking about adopting a girl from China. It's another rainy spring day here, which might make for a late night of reading tonight!