The thing

At any given time during my normal morning routine, I can tell what time it is. My alarm goes off at 5:30 and I'm out of the shower by 6. By 6:30 I'm turning off the blow dryer and my make-up is done by 7. By 7:30 I'm walking out the door.

So when the phone rang in the middle of me putting on mascara, I knew it wasn't good. I knew whoever was on the other end was in an urgent need to speak to someone.

They wanted to speak to me, and that 'someone' was my sister. Her father-in-law had passed away just a few hours earlier from a short battle with cancer.

Immediately my heart sank. We've walked this road before with my mom and no matter how many times you deal with death, no matter how many times you try to prepare yourself, the feelings still come rushing back. You re-live that pain all over again. She was obviously hurting for her husband, but also for her own scars that had just been ripped open. You've been there. So you know exactly what they are going thru. That pain is something you do not wish on anyone…especially your husband.

I always feel so helpless when someone I care about loses a loved one. You want so badly to help them -- do SOMEthing -- for them that can help. And at times I've found a few things to do that does seem to help….fix a dinner, deliver a goody bag full of magazines for sleepless nights and a notepad to keep track of the who-did-whats for thank you cards later.

Last night, my "good deed" came in the way of taking my niece (full of cuteness and ornery, BTW) for a few hours while my sister and my brother-in-law tended to business. And let's be honest here, I think I'm the one that benefitted from the "good deed". I'm the one that got a few free hours of QT with Her Giggliness. As sad as it may sound, our lives go entirely too fast and I haven't had the chance to spend one-on-one time with her like I'd want to. OOOOOooooo!!! Add that to the things I get to do with my new "job"!!!

After Dani and I ate our Sloppy Joes and TaterTots, as you can probably imagine, I had no alternative but to give that child a bath. How she managed to get Sloppy Joe's behind her ear is beyond me. (I guess they wouldn't be 'sloppy' if no one made a mess with them, huh?) And having learned the Physics of Child Dinnertime (twice!!) I learned that there comes a point when you don't even try to clean them up with napkins and spit.

Bath time was always always ALWAYS my favorite with my own kids. Taylor would soak in the tub until she turned into a flesh-colored prune and the water was ice cold. That child didn't mind it one bit. And Harley is still a waterbug. She'd play in the tub for an hour or more if I let her. And I used to, until she fell asleep in the tub last summer. Waydago, Mom-of-the-year.

So, I did what any good Aunt would do -- gave her a bath. I stripped her down and let her run naked thru the house for a few minutes while I drew her bath--complete with bubbles, thankyouverymuch. I don't know of a single kid that doesn't love to be naked and running wild. I'm sure it's some sort of freedom in their own mind -- free from diapers and onesies, no doubt. She ran thru the upstairs, screaming at the top of her lungs. I couldn't understand a single word she said but I imagine it was something about being naked and "you can't catch me". Then, she stood at the window for a few minutes, still squealing, and was all "Yeah I'm naked!! You see me???!" to anyone that could hear her outside.

Her mom is probably going to kill me for this, but I couldn't help busting the camera out.

There is just something about those chunky legs and cute toosh that makes me want to squeeze her 'til she pops. And seriously, have you ever seen an ugly toosh on a baby?? Maybe it's just a 'mom' thing.

There was a point in my evening last night with Dani that I realized, if I hadn't realized it before now, that I have definitely turned into my mother. I did with Dani what I watched my mom do to my niece, Ashley, and my cousin Sarah. I could feel my face glowing with excitement and adoration, just as my mom's had years ago.

She always did this thing with babies. And it always included a bath. She loved to give baths and sit there with them, next to the tub, splashing in the water, making those ridiculous faces that we all get sucked into making when kids come around. She'd talk to them like she knew exactly what they were saying. For a few minutes my mom and whichever lucky kid was in the bathtub, were in a world all their own.

Then she'd get them out of the tub, wrap them in a huge, soft towel and cart them into the bedroom. She'd plop them down on the bed and dry them off. Every kid would try to crawl across the bed in an attempt to get away from her, giggling the whole time. Mom would grab their ankle and pull them back to her. This monotonous cycle would repeat itself for what seemed like an hour, and each time she'd pull them back to her, she'd blow a big, loud raspberry on their bare belly. And somewhere in the middle of them rough-housing on the bed, she'd find a spare second to lather them in baby lotion and get them dressed. She got just as much joy out of trying to clothe them as she did bathing them.

I did this thing to Dani last night as if I had done it a million times. As if it were part of my instincts.

T, I know I'm not even a close 2nd to her, but I do hope it comforts you to know that I am unknowingly carrying on Mom's audacious legacy. Last night, Dani got a small piece of Gramma Tutti. And I hope that thru these small ways Dani is coming to know her just as we knew her.