“A.J. volunteered to help us move, but unfortunately Phoenix has Hand, Foot and Mouth disease,” Courtney said.

“What?” I asked, incredulously.

A.J. and Justin were going to a family wedding and had asked me to babysit the whole weekend, but since I already had the trip to Cassadaga planned on Friday, I told her I would come on Saturday. Saint Augustine was an hour away. A babysitter was with them before I got there, but A.J. had neglected to tell me Phoenix had Hand, Foot and Mouth. She just said he “had a little virus he picked up at school.”

There was no turning back at that point, but I’d gotten sick (from Zeke) in Boston and then in Tallahassee, Chris and Courtney were both sick and I got sicker. Looking back on it, I slept in Liam’s room where the mold was the worst, so maybe it was the mold that caused my headache and breathing issues. At any rate, I was sick of being sick, much less arriving at a home with more sickness in store.

I picked up two Happy Meals at McDonalds, because it was lunchtime and headed to A.J.’s house. I got greeted by Wyatt and Phoenix running to me, screaming “Gigi!” and giving me a big hug. Phoenix had little red dots all over his face and goo coming out of his nose. I proudly presented the two yellow and red boxes with the arched handles, only to be told by Wyatt “We just had those.” The babysitter had gotten them Happy Meals, which Phoenix was still eating. So, fail. I ate a Kid’s Hamburger from one of the meals. It was lousy and the fries were cold.

I brought them presents- a coloring book for Phoenix with 4 crayons from my bank and a rope bracelet kit for Wyatt, from Mystic, Connecticut. The babysitter Mia left, putting the car seat in the back seat of my car. Phoenix started coloring on the floor, Wyatt was on his I-pad on the couch and I let the dog (Mera) in. Personally, I think it’s a lot to just babysit two grandchildren, but adding a rambunctious Labrador puppy to the mix? A bit of overkill.

The crayons suddenly disappeared, with remnants of paper left behind.

“Did the dog eat the crayons? I think the dog ate the crayons,” I said, panicking.

“Don’t worry,” said Wyatt calmly, “she’s eaten a lot worse things.”

I asked what we could do, since I didn’t want to be stuck in the house all day (although driving somewhere seemed a bridge too far) and Wyatt suggested going to climb a tree nearby. So, we set out- Wyatt on his scooter, Phoenix on his bike (that seems too big for him)- to a huge tree a couple blocks away. Phoenix had a hard time pedaling, so I tried to help him, but Wyatt was whizzing away and I worried about cars coming and told Wyatt to watch out.

We got to the tree, they climbed it and once Phoenix got up there, he spontaneously jumped into my arms, laughing. He does this without warning and without making sure you are looking- from trees, kitchen counters and couches. It is very dangerous; he has no fear. I had a mini heart attack but Wyatt desperately needed to use the bathroom. I told him to pee in the bushes but it was #2, so off he went on his scooter and off we went with Phoenix on his bike and me desperately trying to keep up with Wyatt.

I could no longer see Wyatt after he turned down his street and I was panicking. “What if someone kidnaps him? What if he gets hit by a car? What if…?” No matter, that when I was a child we could take off all day on our bikes and be home by dinner without any supervision whatsoever. But times are different. And being a Gigi is different than being a parent.

Luckily, his scooter was in the garage when we arrived and he was inside, safe and sound. Phoenix (thank you God) took a nap and Wyatt and I played a fun game called Jumanji. I miss the one-on-one time with Wyatt, because it’s impossible to focus on anything but Phoenix when I watch the two of them.

I gave them baths and contemplated dinner. When I asked A.J. what she had for me to eat for dinner, she said: lentils, turkey slices and frozen pizza. The frozen pizza seemed like our best bet, but when I opened the freezer it was a Publix vegetable pizza. There’s not much of anything sadder than a Publix vegetable pizza for dinner. Unless it’s lentils or turkey slices, so (at Wyatt’s suggestion) we ordered Papa John’s Stuffed Crust Cheese Pizza. It was good.

Dessert was a couple pieces of Halloween candy, but I definitely didn’t want them to eat too much because sugar + kids = chaos. UM lost to FSU but we couldn’t watch the game because I couldn’t figure out the TV and A.J. and Justin were at their wedding so couldn’t explain it to me. We watched Elf on my computer instead. It’s a little early for Christmas movies, but what the heck. Desperate times…

Wyatt wanted Hot Chocolate to drink while watching Elf, but when I opened the pantry, there was no Swiss Miss or the like. There was Hershey’s Cocoa, so I attempted to make hot chocolate with the little bit of milk remaining and something called coconut sugar (which I’ve never heard of).

“This is really strong,” said Wyatt.

It was, but what’s a Gigi to do? I added some water to it and we watched Elf. Phoenix didn’t seem too interested in it and then, exhausted, we went to bed. At least, I was exhausted. I read Phoenix a couple books and then we slept, with Wyatt at one end, me at the other and Phoenix lying between us, making a giant H in the bed. Phoenix coughed all night and I wondered how Hand, Foot and Mouth disease would present in adults. I had a lousy night’s sleep.

Woke up, tried to take a shower in A.J.’s bedroom but had a hard time figuring it out. Hot, cold, bath, shower? There was no soap, only body wash. What do people have against soap these days? I like soap. And I longed for my own shower with soap, my own coffee maker I know how to use, regular sugar, homemade meals, my own bed and my own TV. Even though I can’t always figure out our TV, I have Zeke at home to help me.

When the babysitter arrived to relieve me at 10 a.m., I took out of there like a bat out of hell. So quick, in fact, I left with Phoenix’s car seat in the back seat of my car. I’d never used it and totally forgot it was there. Oh well. So goes Gigi’s Adventure’s in Babysitting. Wyatt asked when the next Gigi Camp would be. I told him maybe we would do a Winter Edition, but we’ll see. I need to regain my strength first.

Up Next: Eating House

While in a sound sleep last weekend in Key Largo, we heard a loud beeping sound that appeared to be a siren blaring, like something out of a World War I movie. At first we thought it was outside, then realized it was coming from inside our unit. The next morning, upon further investigation, it was determined to be coming from our laundry closet and our new (1 year) tankless, hot water heater.

I Googled why our tankless hot water heater would make this sound and discovered it’s either a water or a gas leak. So either catastrophic or fatal consequences to this noise are imminent and it needs to be dealt with, but for now, all’s quiet on the Southern front.

Back at home, our bedroom toilet had grown increasingly fussy and harder to flush.

Is it harder to flush, or not filling up the bowl with water as quickly?

asked my very good and reliable plumber.

Good question. I hadn’t really paid that much attention. Zeke plunged the toilet repeatedly, but when he flushed it this last time, it overflowed. So he turned the water off and called the plumber. He blamed the back-up on me for flushing wipes down the toilet. I NEVER flush wipes down the toilet, but always put them in the garbage can, where they belong.

At the same time this was happening, our guest bathroom kept flushing. Was it a ghost in our house? Using the guest bathroom? I would hope if I was a ghost, I wouldn’t have to be bothered with such earthly matters as that.

Is it flushing, or just running?

asked our very good and reliable plumber.

Another good question I didn’t know the answer to. When he came the next day to solve our toilet dilemma, he said he found a ton of wipes (?) and Dental Floss Picks in our toilet, two of which had wedged into the opening to create a lockjam for toilet paper, wipes and whatever else had collected there. I’m glad I’m not a plumber and glad I have a good one, but wasn’t planning on starting my year off with a $250 plumbing bill.

You really shouldn’t throw anything down the toilet but toilet paper.

said our good and reliable plumber.

But, he also noted that people that don’t follow that rule are what keeps him in business. I swear I didn’t flush any wipes down the toilet and I definitely wouldn’t throw plastic dental picks in there. Who would? Did I have a phantom flusher living in my midst? Was it Wyatt? My housekeeper? Neither one makes sense. And he checked the downstairs toilet and said it was fine. Luckily, he was quick because I had to take Wyatt to golf. He’s now taking Golf and Tennis lessons at Riviera. He says he likes golf better, but we’ll see. He’s only six.

I also babysat Phoenix twice last week. He’s almost nine months and already took his first step, which is early. Just like his Mom A.J., who took her first step at nine months and was walking by ten months. As we all know, as soon as they start walking, life for their caretakers is essentially over, as they can now get into everything.

Phoenix is also suffering from bad separation anxiety, so when he woke up from his nap to find his mother gone, started crying inconsolably. I found three things to keep him from crying: #1 Feeding him #2 Reading Me, You and Peekaboo and #3 Playing (or singing) the song The Ants Go Marching One by One (hurrah, hurrah!). There’s only so much a baby can eat and only so many times I could read that book, but the song was put into steady rotation on my phone.

I fed him warm Egg Drop Soup, which I’d made the night before. It was perfect because it’s basically chicken broth and egg, in small stirred up amounts, easy for a baby to swallow. I was there feeding him this with a little spoon, when his mom walked into the kitchen at last. Hurrah, hurrah!

I’d made the Egg Drop Soup to go with Chicken Lettuce Wraps and Brown Rice for dinner the night before. When I make Chinese food at home, I always feel it’s kind of sad to have only one entree and rice; when you go out to a Chinese restaurant, there are always multiple options to choose from. Egg Drop Soup is the perfect supplement to an Asian meal, as it only takes 10 minutes and can be made with ingredients you, more than likely, already have at home.

This soup looks and tastes exactly like the one you’ll get at a restaurant, only better. It’s a great recipe to have in your back pocket, as Jeff Bridges said about the songs he sang in the movie Crazy Heart. In other words- it’s something you can whip up anytime without too much effort. It’s also perfect if you’re feeling sick, is a great picker-upper on cold, rainy days and comes in handy for feeding fussy babies suffering from separation anxiety.

Don’t leave me this way. I can’t survive I can’t stay alive, without your love, oh baby Don’t leave me this way.

Gloria Gaynor

Easy Egg Drop Soup

Recipe by All RecipesCourse: SoupCuisine: AsianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

2

servings

Prep time

3

minutes

Cooking time

3

minutes

Calories

60

kcal

Ingredients

• 1 cup chicken broth

• 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce

• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil

• 1 teaspoon cornstarch (optional)

• 2 teaspoons water (optional)

• 1 egg, beaten

• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives
  

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper (optional)

Directions

• In a small saucepan, combine the chicken broth, soy sauce and sesame oil. Bring to a boil.
• Stir together the corn starch and water to dissolve and pour into boiling broth.
• Stir gently while you pour in the beaten egg.
• Season with chives, salt and pepper before serving.

Recipe Video

Notes

• While the cornstarch and water mixture are optional, it helps the soup congeal, which is more like the soup served in restaurants.
• This recipe called for optional yellow food coloring, but I didn’t use it.

Up Next: Empower Farms

Up at the crack of dawn, instead of marching I was walking the floor constantly with my small bundle of joy. Instead of jumping jacks, I bounced him, patted his diapers and rocked him to get him to sleep. It was a regimented routine of: wake up, play, eat, burp, eat some more, burp some more and sleep. Over and over again. Instead of ducking bullets from the enemy, I was spit up on, drooled on, pooped and peed on.

I drilled him on his black and white flashcards, read a couple baby books and sang him songs in an attempt to entertain the troops. No Marine Corp Hymn for Liam (the only song my Dad knew how to sing). “Five Little Ducks went out to play” and “Five Little Speckled Frogs sitting on a speckled log” seem to be favorites, with Baby Shark coming in a distant third. A swing and a glider came in handy to relieve the constant holding of my small charge. I forgot how hard it is to do everything one-handed!

I even gave him a bath, which I think deserves an award for bravery- a blue washcloth instead of a purple heart? Liam is a happy baby and was a pleasant most of the day until about five, when he got extremely cranky, fussy and nothing made him happy. It felt like some kind of torture, but instead of a Prisoner of War, I was a Prisoner of Love. I desperately needed reinforcements. Wyatt left around 7, right after Liam finally went to sleep, so all was quiet on the Western Front. I prayed it might be an early bedtime (he usually goes to bed at 8), but no such luck.

There’s no way in hell I’m making dinner tonight.

I told Zeke, when he came home.

So he ordered two sushi rolls from Moon Thai and picked them up for dinner. Just as we were about to sit down to eat our Sloppy J and Sexy Lover roll, guess who woke up? Zeke said “You eat,” and held Liam and I then returned the favor. This reminded me of what my life used to be like with young kids, eating in shifts, gobbling down food as fast as possible and never having a minute to yourself. I don’t miss those days.

The Sloppy J roll had shrimp tempura and avocado inside, topped with tuna, salmon and yellowtail slices on the outside. The Sexy Lover roll has spicy tuna and cucumber topped with spicy tuna, sliced jalapenos, wasabi mayo and cilantro. Both were very good, although sloppily sliced. With dirty hair, spit-up all over my clothes and tight shoulders from holding the baby all day, I felt as far from a Sexy Lover as possible.

Being with the baby all day made me think I need to be doing more yoga, to get myself flexible, relaxed and able to handle these marathon babysitting sessions. Courtney is working 12 hour shifts in Labor and Delivery as a nurse at Mount Sinai and I will be one of the regular sitters each week. It also made me think I need to start eating healthier- more fruits, vegetables and whole grains- in order to stay in ship-shape for all these grandsons!

I had Emma and Guillermo over for pasta Sunday night with Wyatt. As we ate springs with my Grandmother’s pasta sauce, Zeke called me a hoarder. This is the thanks I get for making homemade Sunday gravy, with meatballs, sausage, salad, peas and bread! I was surprised to hear Courtney agree (Emma wisely stayed silent on the matter), saying she’d found something in the freezer she couldn’t imagine what I would be saving it for.

Could it be my frozen celery leaves, parsley stems or onion skins she was referring to? Or perhaps the chicken skin in a plastic bag, mushroom stems or parmesan cheese rinds? Doesn’t she know that eliminating food waste (a big problem in our country?) is all the rage these days? I’ve been ahead of the curve on that one for decades. My mom says I act like someone who was raised in the Great Depression and it’s true; I just can’t bear to throw anything away.

So I took my onions skins, mushroom stems, celery leaves and parsley stems and made a vegetable broth with them. I filled the pot with purified water, added my scraps and a couple bay leaves, brought it to a boil and simmered it for a couple hours. I find vegetable broth in the grocery store has an odd flavor. This broth unfortunately lacked flavor as well, so I added some salt and mushroom seasoning to punch it up. Perhaps a cube of vegetable bouillon would have helped as well. I used this broth as a base for a Minestrone Soup I made the next day.

I used a recipe from Cookie and Kate, which has wonderful vegetarian recipes. This soup is totally vegan, except for the Parmesan cheese on top. I also added Parmesan rinds to the pot, to give it a depth of umami flavor. You know the really hard part covering Parmesan cheese? I cut them off and save them to use in soups and pasta sauces. The only thing I haven’t made use of is the chicken skin, but just give me time.

In other news, Mr. Potato Head is no longer going to be a Mr., but now will just be Potato Head, in order to be gender-inclusive. Potato Head will come with various parts- eyelashes, mustache, purse and pipe- that can go either way (or both ways). Good news! After staying on the phone with American Express for hours last week, I finally scored tickets to a Resy event in Wynwood later this month for a drive-through dining experience. Ten Miami chefs, including Michelle Bernstein and Michael Schwartz, are serving a ten-course meal to diners in their cars. It’s March 18th and I can’t wait!

Zeke and I went down to our condo in the Keys Friday to check on a boat cover I’d gotten him as a Christmas present. Luckily my brother-in-law trailered the boat back from the boat dealership, so we didn’t have to deal with that nightmare again, but when Zeke checked the boat last week in the boat yard, he couldn’t find the boat cover. I wasn’t too concerned, as I know how Zeke looks for things, but we decided we better go down to make sure it was there and put it on the boat.

When Zeke looked again, “Surprise, surprise!” (as Gomer Pyle liked to say)- there was the boat cover, in the head, just as Unique Marine had informed us. Zeke removed it from its bag and it was like a giant black amoeba sprawling out inside our boat, with no rhyme or reason as to how it was to go. There were no instructions, but we finally got it figured out, positioned it in place and we went to get a drink, before heading home.

Getting a margarita at 3:30 on a Friday afternoon was probably not the best idea in the world. But we were in the Keys, celebrating our victory over the boat cover, enjoying the day and missing our little slice of Paradise. The Big Chill serves a margarita I actually like, not easy to find in the Keys. Their Perfect Margarita is made with tequila (Jose Cuervo), lime juice and orange liqueur, exactly as it should be made; for some reason, the salt around the rim tastes better than regular salt. It went down quite easily, as we listened to some island tunes and looked out at the glittering bay. Getting the second margarita was probably not advised, but I did it anyway.

Needless to say, when we got home, I didn’t feel up to going out so we just grilled some sausages outside by the pool to make sandwiches and listened to Margaritaville on Pandora. Which is what we will continue doing as we count the remaining days of March, waiting to get our condo back in April. Until then, I have a little Drill Sergeant living upstairs who demands my time and attention.

So bring me two pina coladas, I want one for each hand, Let’s set sail with Captain Morgan and we’ll never leave dry land, Hey troubles, I forgot them. I buried them in the sand, So bring me two pina coladas, she said goodbye to her good timin’ man.

Garth Brooks

Up Next: Minestrone Soup