Pragmatist
Pragmatist

I went to Santa Rosa to visit My Baby on Thursday.

I should never venture on a trip to somewhere I've never been before.  Directions? I had them all written out with arrows pointing left and right, showing me where and when to turn, and all that. So the first thing I do is miss the first turn off I-80.

That sign was not there.

Well, maybe it was, but with all the "road repairs" going on, and lanes disappearing, maybe it was, but I swear, the sign pointing to State 37 was either not there or was disguised as a detour sign.

Anyway... I ended up in the middle of San Francisco, the Tenderloin District I think it's called.  I was following all the signs to the Golden Gate Bridge, but wouldn't you know, I was one lane to the left from being able to make the exit to the road to the Bridge.

Here's the problem.  I have no sense of direction.  None.  The only reason I know East from West is because I've lived here in Sacramento for 28 years.

So. I finally spotted a St Vincent de Paul facility, and I knew they could help me, and they would let me use the ladies' which I needed very badly by then.  Yes, I got relief and directions, and wouldn't you know, I turned onto the wrong street. The right direction, but the wrong street.  *sigh*

I finally found another place to get help, a high-end furniture store. Wish I'd been there to buy.  But the man there Googled Map Quest for me, and printed me a copy of the route I "should" take.  I went along fine for a few miles, and all of a sudden, the world took a twist, and I was absolutely sure, positive, I was going the wrong way.  I wasn't. So after a few more turns, and a serious session with the map, I oriented myself, found that I was indeed going the right direction, and found The Bridge right where it was supposed to be.

OK. I'm good now. Pointed in the right direction. Didn't feel like North, but the roadside signs keep reassuring me that I was on 101 North. Another hour of driving from San Francisco.  All was fine until I hit Santa Rosa. More road work, and the usual afternoon traffic. A couple miles of parking lot on the freeway.  I finally got to the place to get off the freeway, and miracle of miracles, I turned the right direction, and found the street I was looking for, and again turned the right direction and followed the street numbers.

It is now 4:00 o'clock in the afternoon. I left Sacramento at 10:15 in the morning.  That trip "normally" should take two hours and 15 minutes.  My first words were "Feed me." and "Where is the bathroom?!" Or was it the other way around?

Nevermind.

Oh. my. goodness. That girl is beautiful!  Not much hair  yet, but it is RED. Carrot red. Eyes are brown, and her skin could be described as alabaster.  And that smile. I don't know if she remembers me. I don't think so. But she put her arms out for me to hold her. I nearly dropped her. She weighs a ton!  OK, that's an exaggeration. But she is heavy.   Yes, I took pictures, but I haven't gotten them to the computer yet. Hey, I got home three minutes after candle lighting time yesterday.   And that's another story of freeway parking lots. And wrong turns. And lost directions.  That's for another time. Suffice it to say that I was three and a half hours coming home.

I don't think I'm a biased great-grammie. I've proof that I'm not. Other people stop and smile and talk to Dierdre. They tell Poppu how beautiful she is, and thank him for bringing her around so they can admire her.  Truth!  He says he's going to get her an agent.

That smile! Two lower teeth pretty well up, two upper teeth that need some more showing.  She mangles bagels, and loves yogurt. I watch Gryffan feeding her, and she ate the whole carton of yogurt.  She is eating a variety of pureed baby food, and so far the only thing she doesn't like is peaches, of all things.  Loves spinach. Go figure.

Gryffan has been trying to convince Tracey that DiDi should have a sippy cup for juice. Her bottle is for milk, and she just wouldn't accept juice in a bottle.  So, Thursday, DiDi got her sippy cup, put juice in it, and DiDi figured out immediately which end goes into the mouth,  and she drank her juice. And offered Grammie some. Oh, yeah, and she likes prune juice. 

She gives big sloppy kisses, too.

And she laughs.  We had a real laugh fest when I was changing her. I don't know what was so amusing, but we had a grand time laughing it up.

This baby is trying so hard to communicate. She hasn't mastered English, and I don't speak Dierdre, but we communicated. She walks cautiously a few steps, and does much better if someone is holding her hand. Actually, I don't think she should be walking so early, and at her weight. But she'll be one year old in December, the 8th (Hi, Ee Lynn!), so it's her decision, and we grownups just stand by an applaud her progress. 

I'll be going back once a month, and there is now a cot and mattress at their place for me when I return. I take my own sheets and pillow. The cot and mattress were taking up space in my little storage space, of no use here.

Oh, I took some books and some furry toys, one of which is a gorilla. DiDi fell in love with the gorilla. She was trying to figure out how to get his arms around her. She was crawling all over him, and took a tumble, with her under him. She peeked up over his shoulder and laughed.

Can I wait a month for another visit?


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