A Taste of Parenthood

From Friday to Saturday evening Jeremy and I babysat the Nilsson girls while Brooke and Ryan went to Catalina Island. In case you don't know yet, this is the family from church that I help nanny twice a week. They have three girls: Rylie, who is two, and Brielle and Zoey, who are twins, 11 months old. We actually volunteered to do it since we love their family and know that Brooke and Ryan probably don't get a lot of "couple time." And we hope that when we're parents there will be a nice, capable couple out there who would do the same for us.

I'm not gonna lie. It was the most rewarding work I've done in a long time. No kidding, it was a LOT of work and we were pooped by the time Brooke and Ryan got back. But it was also soooo fun. How often do you get smiles and giggles in exchange for making a silly face and simply saying "AaaBOO"? I mean, you've gotta admit how neat it is to have a little person fall in love with you simply because you make the most ridiculous sounds!

It was awesome to have Jeremy help. He is really embarrassed that I'm saying this, but I don't care! He deserves to be recognized. Seriously, I got a great catch. And fortunate, too, because I never had the chance to prove Jeremy's children skills before we were engaged. With every other guy I dated, I organized at least one date around kids to test his capabilities with children. Somehow Jeremy got a rain check on that one and I had to go on faith. It must have been his way of surprising me with his hidden talent. Jeremy is a complete natural with children!

Jeremy exceeds all of my child-skill expectations in a man. He holds babies and little people perfectly, not in the awkward way that some guys do- even though he is large in stature. He's really sweet and gentle with them. Even if someone else is holding the child nearby, without thinking about it, Jeremy will reach over to the baby and stroke its leg or let it grab his hand, just while he's carrying on a conversation with people.

Jeremy knows how to change diapers, rock babies to sleep, feed babies bottles, and calm an upset two year old. He can multi-task with babe in arms. He knows how to kindly discipline, play imagination, and read books without sounding monotone. In fact, Jeremy makes funny sound effects for every voice or object in books that he reads to kids. (I should've known since he does this in adult conversations, too, which is something that I fell in love with right away). Jeremy also knows how to use teachable moments. He makes mundane things like pushing a stroller interesting. He loves to cuddle, and kids love to cuddle with him.

Below are some moments to give you a picture of our babysitting weekend:

Funny Moment: While playing imagination, Rylie and I "drove" to the store. I asked her "What kind of store are we at?" Rylie proudly responded, "Um. A white one!" Later, Jeremy said that's how he categorizes his store visits, too. He either sells to Vietnamese, White, Hispanic or Black stores.

Most Stressful Moment: Bathing the girls one at a time in the kitchen sink. (Jeremy was at a bball game). Zoey was really upset about getting in the water, and kept leaning over the edge while I tried rinsing her off. Water got all over me and the floor. She cried a lot and I got frustrated.

Music Moment: Since I'm a music teacher and worked at the BYU music preschool for 2 years, you can imagine that I do a LOT of musical activities with the girls. We stopped at our apartment for Jeremy to change his clothes. The girls have been there once before, and Rylie was really excited to be there. (And I mean REALLY excited. It was so funny.) Anyway, while we played in the living room, Rylie got up to the piano and sang her version of "I am a Child of God." Then, she played some lower notes and talked in a deep voice, "Monstas walking in castle." She was retelling the Halloween story that we made up at the piano before! We told about a castle where ghosts, witches and monsters lived. The monsters were represented with low, slow notes. How rewarding to see that she remembered!!

Longest Quiet Moment: After calming Rylie from a nightmare, I went to sleep and the clock said 12:40am. The next time I was woken by Zoey and the clock said 2:35am. I have a better understanding now of what parents mean when they say Sleepless Nights. And this was cake compared to newborns!

Sentimental Moment: Jeremy gave me a kiss and we sat down together on the couch. Rylie jumped on my lap and said, "SawahLynn, Jehmy loves you?" I chuckled and said, "Yeah. And I love him. And we love you, Rylie." A big grin spread across her face.

Annoying Moment: I was holding Brielle, and headed for the pantry door that is in the corner of the kitchen. Rylie went ahead of me to help get the food. Keiko, the dog, lept in front of me before I got there. We were all cramped so that I couldn't open the pantry or move. When I finally got what I needed and tried getting out of the mess, Zoey and Keiko had creeped up and blockaded my way out! I know the dog's just trying to be a part of the family, but really. It's so annoying when I've got people in my arms and he's in the way.

Messy Moment: We got Wendy's and set out a picnic at Mile Square Park, which is a gorgeous square mile of grass, ponds, playgrounds and bike paths. I fed the twins baby food in their car seats. We had all our food spread out on the blanket and the girls' faces were covered in Gerber goop. But the breeze and warmth was perfect, and it was great to just be outside, eating and making a mess. All messes can be cleaned, ya know.

Another Funny Moment: We found some ducks to feed. The girls were enthralled. After 10 minutes of feeding the ducks, Jeremy realized that he was standing on a giant sign painted on the pavement: DO NOT FEED THE DUCKS. We looked around and realized that these signs were painted every five feet apart and there were other signs posted around the water. Then we noticed that people all around the pond were staring at us! Fearful of getting arrested or something, we threw in the last chunk of duck food and walked off to the playground, trying to look inconspicuous. We also got chased by geese later on. Not the friendliest bird-of-a-feather out there, that's for sure!

Favorite moment: Jeremy had Zoey bundled and cuddled asleep on his chest and his arm around Rylie, who was sitting beside him. Both of them were staring wide-eyed at SportsCenter on TV.

Educational Moment One: Unlike other times that I've done this sorta thing as a single gal, there was a huge feeling of security from the girls because Jeremy was there. Rylie often made comments about how Jeremy was going to go to the park with us and eat with us and sleep with us. Zoey and Brielle loved that he was there, too. Just more evidence of how important marriage between a man and a woman really is!

Educational Moment Two: Indeed, it was a lot of work. But very rewarding. I'm really excited for Jeremy and I to be parents someday! I think we'll do a pretty good job of it because we were a great team!! I'm still baby hungry, but I think I can hold out a little longer, as I really enjoy the freedom to sleep through the whole night undisturbed. We're gonna gladly sleep it up as long as the Lord sees fit!