Date Night - New Parents Style

Author's Note: This post was started Friday night... and just finished Sunday night. Such is my new life.

Benny and I just got back from our first date night since Hazel's arrival. My mom and dad graciously offered to babysit the Lioness to give us some much needed adult time. Of course, we jumped at the opportunity. And by "jumped", I mean that I only had one minor meltdown as we were pulling out of the driveway and I made Benny holler and carry on like Hazel does so that I wouldn't be too heartsick from being away from her.

We went to lunch at Sonora Grill... which happened to be our last pre-Hazel date and, now, our first post-Hazel date. While there, we discussed just how bad it would be if we went to the Marriott across the street and checked in. To sleep. And not "sleep". Actual SLEEP. If we rented the room for like three hours just to sleep, would they believe us?

Afterwards, we went to The Blind Side... which I highly recommend, btw... and then headed home to see if Hazel's screams had left my parents the quivering piles of protoplasm that it leaves us. I didn't know what I hoped for when we returned home... did I want her awake or asleep? If she was awake, she was probably screaming bloody murder. But if she was asleep, I couldn't love on her. It was quite the quandry.

But, when we walked through the door, my parents were calmly reading... all of their brain matter securely in place. And Hazel was sound asleep in the bouncer. Peacefully. And had been for like an hour or so. WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY BABY?

When we asked how it had been, we fully expected them to say something like: "Wow! You deal with that every night? No wonder Benny needs a beer (or 20) each night. You two deserve an award for living through this every day!"

But... no. Grandma and Grandpa said that it had been enjoyable and could they come down and babysit for us more? Because next to butterfly farts and rainbow colored puppies, little Hazel could not be more precious.

Again, WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY BABY???

Turns out, Hazel loves her Grammy and Pappy... possibly more than her Mommy and Daddy. Who. Knew? Also, we picked up some hints from my parents... apparently, Hazel loves whistling and Benny's been whistling to her ever since whenever she gets a little fussy. So, we've got that going for us.

And, in all reality, Hazel is a good baby. And she doesn't scream or cry any more than your average baby. But, when you're the baby of two people who have been used to a quiet house with the exception of the clickity-clack of the dogs claws on the hardwood floor and the occasional barking freak-out at the dragonfly outside, any noise you make is likely to make their heads explode. So, it's been a bit of an adjustment. Not Hazel's fault... our fault. We asked for this, remember?

And, we're figuring stuff out as we go along. Like for instance, who's in charge around here. It's amazing how something that weighs a little over 10 pounds can run a household. For real.