"Duh!" Ariah pointed excitedly at the duckling that tried its hardest to keep up with the rest of its siblings. Her eyes were wide with curiosity and her lips were permanently in the shape of an 'O'.
"Duck," I repeated through my giggle. "Say bye bye to the duck, baby."
She wagged her hand and babbled her goodbye, but still stayed in the same spot. We watched as the entire family of seven made their smooth escape to the lake. She inched closer to the shore, and for a second I thought she was going to try and splash after them. I was ready to step in and swoop her up, but she only watched in awe.
Huh, maybe I should get her a pet. A kitten?
"Come eat your lunch." I tugged on one of her pigtails and the mention of food pried her attention from the water. She waddled behind me to our spot on the picnic blanket and waited for me to pull her food from our bag: peanut butter and jelly sandwich, cheez-its, grapes, and water. Since Ariah wasn't in daycare and I didn't work during the day, it was extremely important for her to explore the world. After this last batch of injuries, she and I were cooped up in the apartment for days and I knew she was bored. That was a couple of weeks ago, and now we're back in the groove of things.
Hadn't heard another word from Adonis, but I can't say I'm surprised. He was dealing with things his own way and I had to respect that. What I didn't respect was the fact that he made no effort to reach out to his daughter. All this time he had no problem with doing anything for her but now the cat was out of the bag, he had a problem? That made no sense. He was mad at me, and that's understandable, but he didn't need to take it out on his daughter.
Since the incident, I had successfully won two more fights. Pretty much the same injuries, but they were manageable. Anything for my princess. "You getting ready for nap time?" I noticed her rubbing her eye. She shook her head and reached for a grape. "Yes you are because Mama is too. We can go take a nap, and then we'll go get that surprise I was telling you about, okay?" I handed her the ziploc bag of fruit for her to carry so I could pack up the rest of our things. I tossed the backpack on my shoulders, and she followed behind me - stuffing grapes in her mouth. It's like they're her favorite thing in the world.
•••••
"Come here, stinky!" Our nap was successful, no doubt, but it's what came after that nap that had our day thrown off. Diarrhea; when I say it was everywhere, it's not an exaggeration. A couple wipes did no justice - I had to hose baby girl down in the shower. This called for an immediate laundry cycle and now she was running around freely in just her diaper, refusing to let me clothe her. "I'll give you a cookie if you put these clothes on."
She ran right to me and I tossed her on my bed as she let out a peal of giggles. It took some effort, but I managed to wrestle her into a pair of shorts and a shirt her father bought for her first birthday. She rolled around in the sheets.
"Now we're ready to go." I secured her pair of baby blue converse on her feet and helped her to the floor, and she ran off in front of me to the kitchen so I could grab my things. "Oh, before I forget -" I handed her the promised cookie and she thanked me with a smile. "Now we're ready to go."
A short car ride later, I shut the car off and stared up at the building. I was both prepared and unprepared for this adventure, but I knew it would be fun nonetheless. It was a learning experience for both of us and it seemed like Ariah would benefit from it more than I would. So why not?
I led her inside and everything was chaos. At least two other families were here, registering and whatnot to bring home a new furry friend. It was loud with the barking animals in the back, and Ariah clung to my hand shyly.
