Family help- Part 1

We have had the opportunity to have our family help us out this summer and care for the boys. We were hoping for the chance to keep Tucker out of day care an extra month or two, I wanted a bit more time for him to learn to take the bottle and to start food, and really I wanted a chance to mentally adjust back to the idea of being a working mom again. Time off with the boys went by so fast. I will still visit Tucker every lunch at day-care once he starts, but having the opportunity to just run home and feed him and play with Owen really warmed my heart. Somehow the stars aligned and it worked out for us to have seven weeks or so of family help. We're about half way through at this point, and while it hasn't been seamless, smooth, or perfect, it has been very special and our boys have been very well loved.

My sister Jamie, her son Dylan - ~10 months, and mom came for the first week that Kris and I were both back to work. They had their hands full - mainly with the extra attention required for three kids - a 2 year old that is sort-of kinda potty training, a ten month crawler/cruiser, and a five + month old baby trying to learn to roll over, apart from both his parents for more than an hour or two for the first time. What a week! Needless to say, we all turned in for bed early most every night!

Kris' parents graced us for the second shift. For a few hours, they overlapped with Jamie & my mom and they enjoyed their chance to dote on Dylan. Unfortunately, they came for our first heat wave of the summer which impacted our daily fun outings a little. Since it was a bit to hot to enjoy the patio most of the time, Granddaddy decided to help us out and install ceiling fans in the boys' rooms. What a difference a fan makes! I'm sure they don't really agree, but in our opinion, week 2 has probably been the easiest week to date. We had 2 adults for 2 kids and as demanding as that can be, we are now quite aware of how much more 1 extra child adds to the mix! Our best indicator, however, is the fact that we actually had a chance to watch a few movies in the evening. By "we", I really mean Kris and his parents. I think I slept through the only one I attempted to watch!

Kris' parents left on the 4th of July and my sister Kristin and crew arrived on the 5th.

Kristin and Charles planned to stay for one month and return to OC with us on a road trip in early August. My brother-n-law Jeremy and step brother Gianni planned to stay for about a week, and my dad planned to join us for a fun, long weekend before Jeremy, Gianni, and my dad went back to OC.

It's probably fair to write that all hell broke loose when late on the 5th, Owen woke up from his sleep with the stomach bug. By early morning, I had it, and by the next afternoon Kris had it. Oh my - this was a nasty bug; quite possibly one of the nastiest bugs to ever inflict itself on me or anybody I know. We weren't even attending day-care and we were hit! Our entire day-care - with the exception of a handful of kids and two teachers, was hit with it at one point during a month long period (as were most other facilities in the area). Owen was okay- off and on for a few days, but remained sick for most of the week. The bug kicked my butt and I was down for about two days. Relatively speaking, it was mild for Kris. And sadly, my entire visiting family came down with it at some point during the first week. We postponed my Dad's flight to Sunday afternoon, with the hopes that he'd miss it and that with our intense cleansing with bleach- we'd kill off most of the germs. Jeremy got sick shortly after me, but Kristin, Charles, and Gianni all seemed like they were golden. Within a few hours of picking up my Dad from the airport, Jeremy, was hit again and Kristin & Gianni came down with it. Charles came down with it on Tuesday morning- and at that point, we gently suggested to my Dad that he and Gianni leave before he came down with it, too. He ended up with a mild version - but thankfully, it wasn't too bad.

As I write this, I'm aware that there is no way I can convey how awful Kris and I felt - physically beat up from the bug and emotionally drained from Owen's ordeal and the worry about my family getting it to the strain and horror of them actually getting sick, especially Charles who like Owen cried multiple times when sick. The week was so long! We are grateful because it could have been much worse. We were able to help each other and for the most part the intensity only lasted 24 hours. Many friends inflicted endured a longer 76 hour strain. Believe it or not, somehow, Jeremy managed to do a bunch of yard work for us and he also cleaned our garage! We have no idea how he found the strength to attempt those jobs, let alone finish. We had a few fun hours at Lake Natomas with my Dad and the whole gang before we knew round two had set in and we also recovered well enough to enjoy a couple of meals together and the boys were able to get in a couple of games of laser tag.

After the "sick" week, we decided to put Owen back into day care a few days a week. While Kristin is an absolute pro with kids, it's tough to provide enough quality care and attention to three kids - age 8, almost 3, and 6 months, especially when the two younger ones have different nap-eating-potty schedules. It would probably be different if Owen was completely potty trained- but the fact that he is in training really doesn't help the cause. Plus, Owen was really starting to miss his friends. We're optimistic that the the next month will be easier for everybody. We've had a few healthy days to create a new routine and so far everything has been great.

Let me just say - we appreciate our family SO much!! I'm especially grateful to Kristin, who decided to hang in with us for the rest of the summer. Even though we are ready to put Tucker into day-care in August, it's really wonderful to know he can stay at home for a few more weeks!

Part 2 - to follow in a few weeks. Here's to wishing the stomach bug stays away for a very long time!