First Contact: Story-time

Stroller Valet Service: Captured this moment, minus 10 other strollers.....

Library time in Arlington is intense.  Let me tell you.  They have maximum capacity sign when you enter the door, maximum of 80 people.  Seriously.  And this is the fourth story-time of the week, which are all exactly the same, I might add.  So presumably, people could choose anytime and likely each story-time is just as full at other times too.  I arrive on time and the room is filled with 30 mothers and the odd father and the din of their abundance of wiggling, squawking, gurgling, big-eyed babes.  They each don name-tags.  The woman welcomes me and asks me to sign in and gives Gabriel a name tag to fill out.  Next, as stroller valet, she parks my stroller for me.  I cannot get out.  Good thing Gabriel behaved himself.

Now you have to see this from Gabriel's perspective.  We have been traveling for over two months.  During the time, Gabriel has spent likely a grand total of 2-3 hours of his awake time with a child in the room.  A child. Maybe two.  When one squawks or cries, he is terrified and begins to cry.  Flash-forward to the library.  The room is filled with over 30 babies.  The noise is so loud that the very lovely and quite articulate and clear-speaking librarian has to shout the story over the cacophony of babies who wiggle and squeal on the floor and on the laps of their parents.  It's so busy, I cannot even locate my new friend Margaret and daughter Corinne, who we had planned to meet.

Gabriel, wide-eyed sits quietly on my lap.  Even at his loudest, Gabriel is a quiet baby.  Sometimes when he is playing, I actually have to peek around the corner to see if he is still awake or into something because, at least currently, he is so quiet.  At the library, he watches, reaching out hesitantly to the baby girl who has snatched Harvé, his monkey out of Gabriel's arms and is about to walk over him.  He doesn't make one sound the entire time.  He's flabbergasted.  Who are these little people?  And why are they making soooo much noise?  

"Story-time" aka social time with felt-board and puppet stories and songs happening in the background, ends early.  Social hour (15 minutes) begins.  Boxes of toys come out and are distributed.  There are more babies than toys, but that's OK.  The room slowly begins to empty out.  Our heads are spinning.  But we make plans with our new friends to meet again next week.