It's 6:15 a.m., and the day is off to a fun start. After feeding Johanna at 2:30 and again at 5, S asked me to take Johaana out of the room. This is a typical early morning practice. She needed the sleep, she had done the earlier feeding, it was my turn. It is also becoming Johanna's practice that if she is awake, she doesn't want to lie there in the dark while S and I sleep - she wants to be awake and active - so what might look like fussiness (my first question is always, "is she hungry?") was really a desire to get out of bed. S and I appreciate this because S wanted to be a farmer, and now her daughter likes to get up as early as farmers do. It's enough to make a parent proud.

Anyway, we were sitting out here on the chaise when Johanna makes it apparent her diaper will need to be changed. I wait a few minutes to make sure she's done, then get up to get the changing pad. I set the pad on the chaise and remove the poopy diaper. This is where the comedy begins. The onesie gets dirty because I didn't get wipe her clean the first time, so now I have to change her clothes. She hates it when I have to remove anything over her head, and she cries as usual. I'm out in the living room, trying not to disturb S, so I calm Johanna down and leave her on the changing mat and go to the dryer, remembering that we had just done a load. The outfit I find is an over the head piece, so I dive right in, wanting to get this part over with. If you recall, I haven't mentioned putting a diaper back on, and I don't realize the problem that caused until my hand slips on the wet pad. The new outfit, Johanna's back, the chaise, and the entire changing pad are covered in urine. Johanna is not happy! I clean her, lay her on the white shag carpet (no diaper!) and clean everything up with the only things available - the clean cloth diaper and a cloth dinner napkin that had been left out in the living room. Finally, two outfits and two diapers later, she's calmed down and clean. This time I get a button up onesie to avoid the head and neck problem. She's falling asleep on my lap right now, and I'm faced with another dilemma: the blanket I'm using is letting in a draft around my feet, but if I move, Johanna will wake up. Is it worth it?