Saturday Night

My nephew is cute, he is very active and he is in many ways a ‘typical’ boy – fascinated with dirt, rocks, animals and throwing things – often in combination.

I was given certain instructions: Bedtime at 9:30, no shoes on the couch, no snacks before bed, etc etc.  No problem.

So we spent the evening playing and running around and making a tent and putting stuff in boxes and then emptying those boxes all over the house and learning to make funny sounds – after all, isn’t that really my job?  And then, as 9:30 approached, I (naively) said to him, “Ok, sleepytime”.

Well, as it turns out, my nephew also has a very strong set of lungs.

I needed a compromise. In a moment of genius, I decided to take him for a walk in his stroller – this would surely work to put him to sleep, as it had many times before.

1 hr later, after walking in circles around the streets of Thiseio, he was still awake. I recalled the many times I told my friends “I love living in the centre – there is always so much action.”  Well, yeah, so much action and so little sleep for a toddler who is fascinated by anything that moves. Including cars, trains, bicycles, and all cats.

Eventually he was asleep. And eventually we were back home.  When his parents returned a while later, we called the evening a success and I offered to do it all again ‘anytime’.  (Did I really say that?!)

It was definitely a lot of work, that much is clear. But it was also tons and tons of fun!

Sunday morning came too soon – but it also brought Sunday shopping and autumn sales. The perfect reward for my ‘Saturday night’ adventure. I must say I was shocked by the number of people out in the city centre – it was beyond busy – and I was so glad about that. 

Saturday night babysitting - a not-to-be-missed adventure ;)

Until next week,

Jack

In this weekly space, keep up with ‘Jack’ as he navigates daily life in Athens… Anecdotes, stories, hits & misses, the good, the bad and, well, the rest…