Adventures in babysitting

Just like the title suggests this weekend has been quite akin to a movie of the same name I remember seeing when I was in school.

It started out to be a quiet one away in Woolongong. As my sister put it "come along with us, what will you do home alone" which in parenting speak translates into "we need you to babysit". I gave in.

Didn't realize how much goes into a simple 2 day trip with a baby. My producing skills sure came in handy, and I was mocked at by my brother-in-law for the many lists that were drafted, re-written and then published.

Other than what I was asked to do I took care of the entertainment for Naina - made sure we had plenty of Tigger & Pooh videos on my laptop and all of her favorite music including the most important one, her bedtime music which has spiritual and calming chant tracks all in Sanskrit.

I will skip through and go straight to the adventures. Last evening Pooja & Karan leave to go for their seminar. I am chuffed with having rather quickly managed to put Naina to bed. While she is still on my lap I am debating in my head which would be a better entertainment choice tonight "House" or "Grey's Anatomy". Neither, she wakes up very suddenly, is upset because I am not her mum and does not recognize her surroundings. The screams get louder and tears more real and lo and behold I am covered in baby throw-up - she does not stop for quite a while and we both are covered from head to toe (and I spend an hour in the shower getting rid of the lovely un-escape like fragrance on me).

Thank God for cellphones but most importantly the silent mode on phones so mothers can be in seminars and still keep an eye on SOS calls from babysitters. Help arrives and all is good...

.... until today. We come back from a walk around town and I need to use the loo. Since the suite isn't 'naina-proofed' I am afraid to leave her by herself so decide to put her back in her pram. I keep talking to her so she knows I am still around. As I am washing my hands I hear her screaming and my heart begins to race. I jump out to find her stuck in her pram trying to get out of it, escape more like it (I forgot to strap her). I panic and this time my brother-in-law comes to the rescue calms the baby down and gets her out of the tangle. Phew!

The afternoon is uneventful!

But not for long. My princess wakes up from her afternoon nap and needs a nappy change. Simple enough. Done it many times before. It all goes smoothly until a moment's delay or pure bad luck if you ask me, and my niece is covered in her own pee because my hands were not swift enough to put the damn nappy under her in time. I somehow manage to get myself (and her) out of that mess.

A clean happy baby decides to make a nice day into an even more stressful one and topples a chair over herself while I am in the kitchen sterilizing her bottles(I swear I kept an eye on her). My agile body leaps into the air and across to the living area and manages to rescue her and hug her until she calms down.

That should have told me today is not my day. Take the rest of the day off Deepa!

Now I am running out of ideas to keep this very curious baby safe in a hotel suite that isn't the least bit baby-proofed. So I text my sister for help yet again. I am told to meet them half way between the hotel and the convention center so we can all get a bite to eat (I was thinking more on the lines of "House of Ale"). The thought excites me and I shift into fifth gear and zoom in and out of rooms grabbing everything I can think of that the baby might need and head downstairs.

A nice gentleman offers to help me with the pram down the few steps at the entrance while I hold Naina and the next thing I know is I am on the floor with a knee that is throbbing bad.

This is what happened. As I was coming down the steps, I slip and realize very quickly that any moment now we are going to hit the SUV at the foot of the steps. So in my mind I already know that I have to make sure nothing happens to the baby. In order for the baby to not leave my arms and get hurt I hold her real tight enveloping her and instead break the fall with my knee.

It was frightening until I loosened my arms and saw Naina smiling at me. Thank you Krsna! A lot of people came running toward me. A chair, blanket (its winter here) and ice pack were brought out immediately, but all I wanted to do was hand over the precious one to her rightful owners.

So my dear friends I am typing this post in my PJ's nursing a very bruised and swollen knee with a few extra strength painkillers (and I admit, a beer) in me.

So how many of you have I scared off (parenthood) with this post. If I have, this is what I will say, its all worthwhile just for that hug they give you when you are reading 'My first words' with them, or the smile they bring to your face when you see them sleeping in their cot with their tiny bottoms sticking in the air or the way they play with your hands as you are holding their bottle while they drink.

I would do it again!