Unexpected benefit of having the cutest baby on the planet

I've discovered that Liza, as small and generally helpless as she is, is good for at least one thing - I get much better service at hardware stores when I bring her with me. When Her Royal Highness enters the store, little old grandpa salesmen flock toward us like ducks to someone throwing breadcrumbs. Today at Ace Hardware we had four of them admiring Liza and asking if they could help me find something. By trial and error I've found that the more dottering and wizened-looking the salesman, the more likely he is to know where everything is and how to use plumbing fixtures to replicate a part that broke when Sam the Electrician was installing the chandelier. Now that Liza can wave, she can even give the grandpas something back for all their cooing and foot-tickling ... although I sometimes have a hard time convincing them to be patient while she works through the 20-second "wave delay" it takes her to figure out what we want her to do. I'm telling you, if I ever go through this whole "rewiring a house" thing again in the future, I'm going to rent a baby to bring along with me when I shop for supplies - they're just so handy!