It was fun! It's a play called "Permanent Collection" and being weekend house manager is great -- I can totally read or work on teacher stuff while the play is going. And opening night is catered -- this time was by Island Catering which is two lovely Jamaican ladies, and I am currently inhaling leftover superspicy jerk chicken and grouper.

Yum.

Yeah, but then if she got loose, there would be shit on the floor, and not contained to the easily washable changing table.

Resolve spot remover is your friend.

eta: Erin, what does a house manager do? I'd do it for Jamaican food.

This was a lot easier before she got mobile. How long until this gets better again?

Um.... so far... I'll let you know.

What the hell are you supposed to do when they turn over and try to stand up/crawl away on the changing table?

Not sure I count as an experienced parent, but I have dealt with this one. My usual choices were: 1) hold her down on the table and waited for her to stop, then change her; 2) give her a toy and/or set up a mobile, mirror, etc to distract her; 3) put a waterproof pad onto the bed and change her there, where she had more room to roam.

I will say that they DO grow out of this fairly quickly. But as a warning, kids can fall. Frances fell off the bed twice. We were terrified. She was fine. ALL kids fall at some point and it's really traumatic when they do, but it usually turns out okay.

Usually the combination of a toy and me singing will distract her, but not this time. She just wanted to turn over and pull up, so that's what she did. I finally just left her in the playpen, dirty diaper and all, for several minutes, then tried again and was able to at least get her in a clean diaper. But she's been a handful and a half lately.

But she's been a handful and a half lately.

Yeah, happy, healthy baby!

Cold comfort, I'm sure, when you're trying to change her (or, like, SLEEP) but Susan, you are a GOOD parent. I've watched my friends do it, and damn, it's a goddamn lot of exhausting work. I respect that so much. I don't think I could do it.

Hil's suggestion is the one I've always used. (Nephew watch, and the boy did NOT like to be changed. Good times, good times. When he's in his teens, which is actually only about four years away, perhaps I shall remind him of this.)

Oh, and kitchen floors and other easy-to-clean surfaces are the way to go if you're going the floor way.

PLEI! You're up!

Tell me something dirty. I think smelling teenage pheremones all week had upped my libido or something. It's completely bizarre.

They eventually figure out that diaper changing goes more quickly if they don't fight it. That hasn't stopped Frances from crying when she's being changed, but that's another thing.