Little Cousins

As the eldest of four kids and neighbour to my aunt, I spent a lot of time with my little cousins, Gelzy, Mamita and Bidinky.  They feel a lot more like siblings, actually - only better because you can give them back!  I bathed them, changed them, put them to sleep, burped them; just like I did my own little brothers. In fact, Mamita used to wake up at 6:00 am, get out of her crib, walk out her front door, walk through the gate to our yard, walk up our front porch, bang on the door and yell at the top of her lungs: "FAHLEESYAH!" *bang* *bang* *bang* "FAHLEESYAH!".  My mom would open the door, Mamita would march through the living room and into my bedroom, climb on my bed and snuggle with me. That memory always makes me smile.

Gelzy (L) and Mamita (R)

For countless times I stayed over to babysit while my Uncle and Aunt went on date nights.  It was fun.
 Everything's more fun in someone else's house when you're 15.

Anyway, these little cousins of mine had very strange, noteworthy habits to keep in mind.  Mamita, for instance, started the night off sleeping parallel to me, on the left,  then perpendicular to me; for a while her foot would be in my face or positioned so that it's dislocating my liver. Somehow, in the morning, she'd end up on the right side of me, parallel.  I never got much rest on those babysitting nights. :)

This was a regular thing until I started University and my little sister (who wasn't so little by that time) took over.

One weekend, Bidinky (the littlest cousin), decided she missed me enough to sleep over at my house.  I had to wake up at 3:00am to take the bus that left for the West at 4:00am.  We went to bed around 9:00.  I didn't get much rest but I learned that Bidinky's sleeping habits surpassed those of her older sister.

Lee Bidinky

Bidinky was two, and small.  I had a double bed.  All night, I was squished in the most uncomfortable position in the furthest corner of my bed.  Bidinky was all over the place.  Mamita moves around you....Bidinky chases you away.

When I would drift into some kind of REM cycle, I'd wake up with a jolt to Bidinky yelling: "Gimme, da mines!"   "Da my ball, Randy!"   "GIMME! DA MINES!"

Translation?  Best I could figure was that she was dreaming that Mamita had her ball and she wanted it back.  Same dream for a few hours.  Same crisis.  Randy. Ball. Gimme.

3:00am came.  I was no more rested than I was when I went to bed.  Bidinky was still asleep when I left.  But that's another one of those memories that I remember with a smile.

Those kiddos. When I think of them, I always remember them as little and  I'm surprised at how much they've grown every time I see them.  Gelzy is getting closer and closer to High School, Mamita just had her Confirmation and Bidinky's once chubby cheeks aren't so chubby anymore.  They're growing up but they will always be my little baby cousins. ♥