Caregivers

My father wants to me post how he is an inadequate caregiver. Because of my c-section, we arranged for help up until my postpartum appointment. My mother was supposed to come in last Sunday, but due to a family emergency, she was unable to come and sent my father in her stead. She'll be arriving tomorrow night and my father will take his turn dealing with the family at large. Anyway, I made the mistake of telling one of my father's friends, "Yeah, Peter is here. But we're really waiting for Nana to show up," to which Peter took great offense.

To set the record straight, my father is a fine grandfather. However, his idea of activities for Doodles include quizzing him on prime numbers (the kid still can't count past ten) and games that involve Doodles running into him and getting trapped in his legs. Just the kind of calming activities I'd like to help my son unwind from his day. And when Doodles does go wild, Peter flops on the couch and says, "Doodles! Come to me. I'm too tired to go up the stairs after you again." Have you tried telling a hyperactive two year old to simply stop running and come to you? Yeah, it works well. Oh, did I mention that Peter also sings Christmas carols to Doodles? When it comes to Sweetie Pie, I think Peter's afraid of breaking her. He treats her so gingerly, as if he's afraid to hold her any other way than on his chest, her head on his shoulder. Which would be fine if it weren't for the panic-striken look on Peter's face. He's great with toddlers, scared of newborns.

I only air this to the world, because Peter said to me this morning, "I can't wait to read your blog about how you want Nana here instead of me." So yes, we're looking forward to Nana's visit. Because Nana puts things away after herself, changes diapers, and focuses Doodles on calming activities like coloring. Don't get me wrong; we're thrilled Peter is here to help. But in the grand scheme of things, give us Nana any day.