Adventures in Babysitting - Part 2

The week after I tended to the Newbletts, I found myself watching three very EXCITED and very ANXIOUS and very ISTHEBABYHEREYETANDWHENWILLMOMBEHOMETODAYTODAY!? Randall children.

After sending Aaron and Jenn off to the hospital, I settled in on the couch to sleep for another hour (to at least 7 a.m.) before the kids woke up.

"Psst."

*pause* I laid very, very still.

"Psst. Aunt Joanna?"

I cracked an eye open and saw little Griffin standing hopefully by the couch.

"Hey buddy." I croaked and wondered why little kids are wired to wake up so early.

"I can't sleep and sometimes when that happens I can watch TV or play games or *long pause as he tested the waters* the Wii." His voice went up at the end, tinged with the hope that on this special day, Aunt Joanna would be so nice (and worn out) that the Wii could be played unrestricted.

"How about some cartoons?" I stuck to my guns - sort of. As I drifted in and out of consciousness, eventually Maddox and Reese emerged with their eyes at half mast and their hair at odd angles.

I began reassuring Reese as to why I was there and not her mother, to which she shyly smiled and said "Baby too big *at this point, she motioned with her hand over her tummy* and it has to come out."

It. Was. Adorable.

Around lunchtime, I prepared a fancy feast (complete with crystal glasses) and asked of the children: "Do you guys know why we're celebrating!?"

Maddox (yelling from his perch on the computer): "Because it's a parents free day and Aunt Joanna is here ALL DAY to help us watch TV and the Wii!"

After I stopped laughing and regained some composure, I agreed and said "But also because baby Harrison is on his way!"

Maddox: "Oh. Yeah - that too."

The celebratory feast.

After the feast of gold fish, peanut butter and jelly and honey sandwiches, leftover Halloween candy was had by all.

"There is no peanut!" Griffin was stunned.

Reese's reaction after being informed of baby Harrison's arrival. And after quite a few handfuls of chocolate.

The only person NOT happy that day was this big guy. Oh sure, I gave him his food (twice, accidentally) and plenty of treats. I pointed out the squirrels in the backyard and the threatening pedestrians in the front. Nothing - and I mean NOTHING - could sway him from his Aaron-deprived depression. 

                                        

He couldn't even look at the camera - his pain was took great.

All in all, the thirteen hour day probably went faster for me then it did for Jenn. The kids were well-behaved and very excited for their new brother. We did end up going to the hospital the next morning, where the following things happened:

1) Maddox snuck out into the hall and started chatting it up with nurses. "What does this do? My name is Maddox! What's yours?"
2) Reese was fascinated by the tiny head of hair on Harrison and kept kissing it.
3) The doctor, for one brief second, thought that I had just delivered a baby. I wasn't quite sure how to take that.
4) The highlight of the drive there was the fact that Aaron parked on the very top of the parking garage. You should have heard the cheers from the backseat as the SUV cleared the fifth level and sunlight broke through the windows. It was almost as good as Disneyland.