Pint-sized Happiness

If you ever want to make me really, really happy, get me some raspberry truffles from the Choclate Apothecary.

My sister bought be some truffles around Christmas time, in a exchange for a night or two of baby-sitting so she and Michael could go out for a night on the town.

I love my sister, and I love my sister's kids, so this really was a pretty sweet deal. Katie-Beth named the date, and last Thursday I showed up at her house for a night of authoritative craziness (me=authoritative, kids=craziness).

Me baby-sitting Katie-Beth's kids is kind of a funny idea, really. I mean, there's no doubt that they like me, but I'm usually the one that gets them all wound-up and rowdy before I send them back to their parents. That's what aunts are supposed to do. Actually being the one in charge was a different story.

So I wasn't entirely sure what to expect.

Here's the run-down: Stephen 7, Kathryn 5, Parker 3, and William 1

Here's what I thought would happen:

• William is usually a mamma's boy, and if KB is around, you can forget cuddling with him. You are no one. Without KB or Michael, he starts to panic, and crying ensues.
• Parker and Kathryn, as delightful as they are, are little kids, and there was a %75 chance that one or both of them would have a meltdown before the night was over.
• Stephen was my one constant. As long as Google maps is handy and he's got a hanger in his hand, he's happy.

Here's what actually happened:

• KB and Michael left. I was in the kitchen with William, feeding him cheese puffs and hoping he didn't know his parents were gone. Then we went to the living room where the other kids were, and I waited for William to start crying. He never did. Except for when he needed a diaper change. It's kind of silly, but baby crying makes me really edgy, and I still kind of see it as kind of a magic trick when something as simple as changing a baby's diaper makes them happy. Cuddly happy baby: check
• Kathryn drew me a picture of a watermelon that I could put up in my cubicle. She forgot to write "Love" before she signed it, so instead of saying "love Kathryn," it says "Kathryn LOVE." Got me some Kathryn love: check.
• We were in the living room eating popcorn and watching X-men, and Parker was climbing behind the couch to the monster sack and jumping off. As with most two-year-olds, he can repeat this action hundreds of times before getting tired of it, so I was surpised when I realized about three episodes later that Parker wasn't jumping off the couch anymore. Then between episodes I hear a quiet "Hep! Hep!" which in two-year-old talk translates to "I managed to get myself stuck between this giant beanbag and the corner and I can't get myself out." In reward for saving him, he grabbed his two fuzzy blankets and snuggled on my lap. Rescue of extreme sports toddler: check.
• Although I love singing, I never considered myself a very good singer, but apparently it is a necessity that you sing these kids to sleep, so I figured if they didn't mind, I didn't mind. Stephen got to stay up a bit later because he's turning 8 next year and his parents are reading the Book of Mormon with him. I am always amazed at how STINKING SMART that kid is. Not only can he read and pronounce most of the words better than some adults I know, but he actually understands a lot of the concepts. We came on the word "Messiah" in one of the verses, and I explained that it was another name for Jesus. Then he rattled off a whole bunch of other names, and we kept reading. I answered a few more questions, knowing that if I fed Stephen any false doctrine, Michael could set him straight. I felt a love for Stephen as we talked about things. It felt good to share my knowledge of the gospel with a child, who I knew was taking it to heart. Bonding moment with stinking smart nephew: check.

I half expected Kathryn or Stephen to get up with some excuse about needing water or forgetting a blanket or something, but if they ever got up, I didn't notice, and I played pathetic games on my phone till KB and Michael got back, bringing me a mini-frosty for my troubles.

As I drove home, I was just really, really happy. I thought about how it could have been frustrating. I'd spent the whole night doing mom-like things with kids that weren't mine and would never be mine. Despite that, I knew that they loved me, that KB and Michael loved me, and that Heavenly Father loved me.

The sum of how I felt came when I was putting the kids to bed. William was out in a blink and, again, didn't cry like I expected him to. Kathryn didn't make a fuss, and when I closed the door to Parker's and Stephen's room, I heard parker say quietly "Soooo happppy."

Me too, Parker, me too.

 

 

Comments

[Katie-Beth]

They definetely love you because I don't think they have ever been quite that good for any other babysitter. And Kathryn is still 5. Thanks again, it was nice going out and knowing that you could handle whatever they dished out.

[Mahna Mahna]

So, what song did you sing to them?

[Darcy]

Kathryn wanted Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Stephen requested I am a Child of God.