The Feel of Cotton

It is high cottonwood season in our neighborhood and there are literally drifts of fluff everywhere you look. On the front porch, along the edge of the walkway, coating lawns so thickly that you can actually see the footprints of cats... So, of course, Olivia wants nothing more than to play in the grass. Finally, after a loooong day of watching her skeedattle to the door, point, and whine to the point of hysterics, I gave in.

Fine, Olivia. Let's play in the cottonwood fluff...

In the first few moments, all was right with the world. Then Olivia discovered that cottonwood seeds stick to everything. Especially when the grass is still dewey (because it is so long that I've begun referring to the lawn as The Meadow).

See that look on her face? It comes accompanied by the high-pitched grunting sounds that means "I don't like this, clean me up!" See, Livi? Mommy is always right. I told you the yard was too cottony to play in right now. (I try to instill vital lessons like this on a daily basis, kind of like brainwashing. What? There's nothing wrong with brainwashing a baby if it's about Mommy being right. Always.) I had actually swept the billowy piles of dander off the deck and raked a portion of the lawn as best I could before setting her down. But, like I said, the grass was still kind of wet. And that damned cotton really does stick to everything. It's a wonder there aren't more cottonwood trees in the world for how prolific their seeds are.

Anyway, I scooped up my fuzzy baby and surprised her with her least favorite activity of all time, the washcloth bath. (Livi hates being dirty, but hates getting clean even more) Still, the cotton stuck. Except now it was snarly, little clumps sticking to her hands, arms, legs, outfit... I dangled her over the sink and tried to wash her hands, but her adorable, pudgy arms were just too short. Finally, I resorted to what I can only refer to as my Flash of Genius. I lint-rollered my kid, head to toe. Worked like a charm, folks. And Olivia preferred it to her washcloth bath hands-down.