The Winnipeg Shower

Sophia's Auntie Kristine and Uncle Adam threw her a shower in Winnipeg on Tuesday, and it was well attended by lots of people who hadn't seen her yet - the Winnipeg gang. I grew up in Winnipeg, and although Mom and Dad Gerhard had seen the new babe as early as a week after she was born, that was, till Tuesday, the only Winnipeg contingent to have met the new arrival. We were on our way to M&D Gerhard's Cottage, on Lake of the Woods in Ontario, and A&K threw us the shower as we were passing through from Regina. It's a 4-and-three-quarter-hour drive from Wolseley to Winnipeg, then another three to the cottage, so it made good sense to break up the trip, what with it being Sophie's first big long car ride.

So we packed up the car with all our belongings, put Sophie in the car seat in the middle of the back seat, Tricia sat beside her, and Haley (the Dog) rode up front in her car seat. Sure, we're yuppies, but we're not the ones who just bought an audi.

So we got to Winnipeg on Monday afternoon, and the car ride went really well - Sophia slept most of the way, with two short stops for food and bums, and she seemed to be happy with the whole distant-car-ride experience. Of course, she was up most of the night, but that wasn't too bad.

We shopped and hung out in Winnipeg for Tuesday morning, and then to the shower. Many many friends and family were there - Auntie Kristine's parents and sister, Sophie's Grandma and Grandpa Gerhard, various family friends, but what made it the most exciting shower by far was the proliferation of small people. Many of our Winnipeg friends are recently family-oriented (we're just now following the trend) so there were, let's see... Jack and Anna and Aiden and Quinlin and Ian. And all of them under five years old. Quite the cacophony, but it was great to see all of that little-person energy. Charlie the cat was there too, it being his house and all, and he was a little unwound by the presence of Haley the Dog, but for the most part they stayed out of each other's way.

Sophie was passed around from willing hands to willing hands (I think there was a "take a number" thing going for a while) but Uncle Adam had her first and I think he would have held her forever - she seemed pretty comfortable too. Kristine seemed to have not-so-great timing, since Sophie was just on the verge of getting crabby or needing to be fed or diapered whenever Kristine took her turn. No worries, Sophie seems to like both her Gerhard Aunt and her Gerhard Uncle equally well.

And they threw us a wonderful party.