I've Been Away Far Too Long

It feels like it's been forever. From Friday at noon until 8 pm Sunday, I was off the grid. I was at my niece's house watching her daughter and son so she could go on a youth retreat with her husband, who is a youth pastor. I could have brought my son's laptop, but that would have left him without a computer, since the PC's monitor is on the fritz. I have my crappy cell phone that I COULD have texted from, had I remembered to grab my bag with the cell phone charger, toothbrush, oatmeal, protein bars and drink sticks. So, all I had was my phone to keep in touch with my kids and husband, minimally, and the tv after the kids went to bed.

It's been a long while since I've spent that much time with a 2 1/2 year old and a 1 year old. I mean, I babysat for 7 years, but that was basically from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. And that was only 3 days a week, most times not even 3 days IN A ROW.  So, I'd have to go back about 13 years to when my kids were that age, when I was in my 20's and they were mine. Yes, I didn't want my kids to get hurt, but there's a certain type of pressure when they're not YOUR kids. So, there was the stress of not letting the kids get hurt, keeping them happy and not missing Mommy and Daddy and sticking to their schedule/routine, PLUS two dogs. Am I cut out for this?

Romeo- thankfully he uses a litter box!

During the day Friday, all things were copasetic. I have to say my niece has her kids terrifically trained for bedtime! My kids were horrors, and I can admit that was my own damn fault. I nursed them in bed, so they slept with me, since Charlie was out, working nights. It was pretty near impossible to get them out of that habit. My son finally started sleeping well when he had his own room with his "big boy" bed and could close the door. That was last year. JUST KIDDING! I'd say he was 8. Chelsea is a great sleeper, now. When she was little she had to sleep on me, usually with one or both of her hands scanning my face. That was frickin' annoying! Anyway, the kids get put in their crib/bed and you just close the door behind you! How awesome is that?!? AND they go to bed between 6 pm and 7 pm!! I think my niece might qualify for the Guinness Book!

So, I put the kids down and everything was great. Erin has a video monitor that I could see and hear what the baby was up to. I didn't sleep very well, being in a "strange" place on a "strange" couch. The baby was great, until 2:30 am. Inconsolable. I was trying to keep him quiet so he wouldn't wake up his sister and it seemed the only thing he liked was me standing and rocking him. Holy bicep hell! We were up and down on the couch for a long while before I realized his gums were bothering him, so I gave him some Motrin. 5:15 am he conked out. Then they were up by 7 am. It was going to be a rough Saturday!

We played ball, a lot. It was thrilling for them to sit across from me, with their legs open, rolling the ball back and forth. They also rode on their ride-on toys, with baby propping his feet up so I could push him in circles around the living room. I brought my hand weights with me for a possible night workout. Who needed to workout? Between running around after the kids, playing with them and rocking the baby, and then taking 7 month old Coon Hound Calvin down a flight of stairs every time he had to go potty (which seemed to be every hour), I was POOPED!

Calvin Klein

Saturday night I wised up. I gave the baby his Motrin BEFORE he went to sleep. They were in by 7:15 pm. I fell asleep by 10 pm with the puppies on the couch and the monitor in my hand. I woke up at 1:30 am and checked the monitor. So far, so good. 3:30 am and I was worried, but he was still out like a light. 6:50 am and the kiddies are finally up and ready for Sunday! I did it! Now I just had to make it through the rest of the day until my niece returned from her trip.

Baby had a bit of a rash on his hiney, so I dug out the diaper cream and slathered him up. I put it on the dresser and left the kids in Sister's room to take Calvin and the Chipmunks out again. This is what I was told to do. The kids play with their toys for the 5 minutes while the dog is doing his business. Come back in the room to play with them and there's white stuff all over Sister's clothes. Guilty face. Look over at baby and he has tracks of white stuff on top of his head. Are you frickin' kidding me?!? The stuff was on her dresser! She must have frickin' diaper cream radar! So, I changed her and attempted to wipe the crap out of his hair. I would've given them a bath if I hadn't been warned that she has a panic attack when her hair is washed and that sets him off with the terrors. Baby wipes it is!!

So, the kids are all in one piece and I didn't lose a dog. It turns out the little girl gets herself in trouble with just about anything she can. After relaying the story to Erin, she proceeded to tell me how she colored the doll stroller with make-up foundation and got her brother with a tube of mascara! So I guess I didn't do TOO bad, then.

I've spent the last two days catching up on e-mails, blogs, Facebook and cleaning. I'm happy to be home with my pretty self-sufficient teenagers. I'm thankful I stopped at two children and even though I hated it at the time, Charlie was right about having the kids closer together, even though it wasn't intentional. 22 months apart might as well have been twins at the time, but now that they're older it doesn't matter at all. I miss the baby stage, but I have definitely had my fill after this weekend. I will positively enjoy being a grandma, in the far off future!