Alex and Kaitlyn headed out on a cruise, and left their offspring with us. Sure, we’re experienced and amazing parents, but sheesh, it’s been like twenty years since we had a one-year-old in our care for more than a few hours at a stretch.
Fortunately being a parent is much like riding a bike, in that you don’t really forget how to do it, and at times you crash spectacularly. Ollie seemed to have a great time with us. Part of it, we decided, was the simple fact that we have so much space. Compared with a tiny college apartment, our house– and the expansive yard surrounding it– probably seems like an endless vista of possibilities to someone who’s less than two feet tall.
He enjoyed riding on our backs as we hiked the driveway and did chores…
One day as I was destroying the yellow menace in our yard, he was following me around and picking a few of the dandies himself. At one point, though, he apparently felt like it had been too much walking, so he plopped down in the grass and just sat there with an angry expression.
(Yes, our grass is obscenely tall… we mowed it the next day.)
As required by law, grandparents are known for spoiling their grandchildren, and we did plenty of that. He was happy at mealtime when he could enjoy bowls of mac and cheese, mixed with the occasional Cheeto or handful of chocolate chips.
He even endured a ten-hour drive back home to Utah, sitting in his car seat with a look of occasional wonder mixed with some zoned-out stares out the window. After arriving at the villa, he actually climbed back into his car seat (which was sitting in the garage) and attempted to buckle himself in!
Although we didn’t enjoy waking up at 5:30 every morning when he’d decided sleepy time was over, and our productivity took a nosedive, it was a blast to have him around for a couple of weeks. Grandparenting is cool.