At the End of the Day

Every now and then a day comes along in which the joys of life are right there on the surface for us to hold, just ready for us to make them a part of ourselves.  Today was one of those days.  I had the privilege of watching Tate (my brother, Lincoln's son), Andrew & Emily (Paul's sister, Tanya's kids) for most of the day.  

These kids are amazing & have such loving & diligent mothers & fathers.  It is so special to get to share some time with them.  In baby age, they are much older now then they were during the winter & spring when we had this privilege a few times.  

4/7/11, Emily is 9 months & Tate is 5 months

No more sitting quietly on the couch together, now they want to move & explore.  They still seem to fascinate each other:  for instance, one will get a bit fussy and the other will chime in with his or her opinion, which immediately stops the original fusser as he or she looks on with inquiring eyes & sometimes a confusing expression on his or her face.  Of course they also want to explore each other...that binkie looks pretty darn good...I'm going for it. 

Early in the afternoon

Later in the day; Got it...sometimes it takes time to get what you want

One of the things that I had never considered many years ago before having my own children was the fact that nieces, nephews & even friends' little ones might be a somewhat regular presence in our home.  I figured that once my own kids moved on, the work of that phase would be over; in this case the door would be closed on changing diapers, washing onesies, wiping up messes 127 times a day, cutting food into little finger size pieces, and the beautiful sound that only an unhappy infant can make when once they have a bottle in their mouth.  But I am truly grateful for opportunities like today.  Goodness, taking a break to rock a baby in the rocking chair, hearing a child laugh, and observing the games little ones play, the discoveries they make & the growth they achieve are a gift to the soul at any time of life.  

Something fascinating about a cold water bottle that makes such great rustly-crunchy sounds when squeezed

 A few things were important to me going into today:  having the patience to meet the needs of all of the children in my care, enjoying alI of said children, & that this day would be a blessing in the lives of my own children.  I am thankful for a loving Father in Heaven who gave me these blessings today & to my own children for their willingness to help & to play with their cousins & each other (most of the time; a little creativity in conflict management was necessary later in the afternoon, but all turned out copasetic eventually).  The babies did each take a nap, albeit at different times.  Tate's wasn't quite as long as it might otherwise have been.  Dallin couldn't resist the sweet softness of a sleeping baby (who can?).  He reached out to nuzzle Tater-bug (without regard to my warning!) & got to experience the work that comes with waking a baby too early.  Luckily for him Tate is a very good-natured boy.  Parker was ready with a quick hug, strong arms for holding & willing hands for changing diapers.  Kyralyn was kind to offer to play with the kids so "you can do what you need to, Mom."  Emily doesn't much care for Kyralyn doing the picking up, the holding, or the hugging lately (it does happen a lot...again, who can resist?).  She spends most of her day with Andrew running in & out of the house playing together & with her friends.  Once in a while they might slow down enough to rest...but only for a few minutes.  

7/29/11

The interplay between Tate & Emily was very enjoyable to watch today.  At one point, Emily pulled herself up to the door of the fridge to play with the # & letter magnets.  Tate came in from the side to get in on the action.  She didn't have much patience for this & called out her protests.  It became so funny when Tate just sat back down & mimicked her protests but with a sparkle in his eye & not a hint of real disgust in his voice.  Emily soon got back to her magnets & created a game for the two of them:  I'll take them off, you put them in your mouth.  Sounds great.

What are you doing up there?

Imagine the sounds of real disgust & mimicked"singing"

Great idea for a game!

After they had devoured enough letters & numbers to digest the alphabet, they moved on to find something in the living room to capture their attention.  Balloons always work for this purpose, especially big ones that are getting worn out & ready to pop (wink, wink).  Emily was getting frustrated that she couldn't hold on to hers & the little princess certainly wasn't about to chase it around the room, no that wouldn't be ladylike; she'd just wait for the prince to give her what she wanted.  Yeah, well this wasn't happening.  Eventually, after trying to just watch Tate & the yellow balloon, or even play with something else entirely, she discovered that she could hold the tied end of the balloon.  With this end in her grasp she could bounce that balloon around as much as she wanted.  This was much better!

7/29/11, Emily is just over 1 year & Tate is 8 months

Tate's yellow balloon popped shortly afterward.  I was prepared for a loud reaction, maybe with tears, but like I stated earlier, he is a good-natured boy.  He just looked around in frustration that his toy had suddenly (& loudly) disappeared.  

Michelle arrived a short while later to retrieve Tate.  Andrew & Emily got to stay for dinner but headed home afterward, & not quick enough for Andrew at that time as Kyralyn had just turned the hose on him...which was not part of the plan for getting the trampoline wet!  At the end of the day I'm grateful for the ability to help family in need, to a loving Father in Heaven who knows me & my needs, for the power of prayer, for loving & helpful children, for new memories & for the ability to send the children home!