Baldwin Family Day Care

is apparently open for business... or something.

So today I had three children at my house that didn't belong to me. Along with my own kids. The irony of this is that I don't like kids. Well I shouldn't say that. It's not that I don't like them. They just irritate me. ha!

Surprisingly enough, it went fine. I normally have my friend Erin's daughter, Ellie, on Wednesdays after school. She is in preschool with Riley and the two of them are best friends. Riley insists that someday they will be married. In fact, they have already pretended to "get married" one day so they could dance and kiss. I am not making this up. Ellie is the cutest. I just adore her, and she's perfect. She's easy to handle, she's a good listener, and when I say it's nap time she goes right up to Violet's room and takes a nap. AWESOME.

Today I also had Joelle's kiddos... and while I was a little nervous at first, it turned out to be great. They are a little trickier cause neither one of them is fully potty trained. And I don't like poop. I am very VERY glad to be out of the diaper stage with my own kids!! But both of them were super today. Everyone loved having Baby Raine around... and she was the happiest, smiliest, giggliest little one ever. I took her out to breakfast with me and she was so funny and cute. Then she took a nap until it was time to get the kids from school. We all had lunch and some playtime in the big dirt pile in our backyard (which will hopefully be done this weekend... I scheduled a family party to take place here on the 17th, so I need it done before then!! I can't wait to share... it's exceeded our expectations for coolness. Of course it has also exceeded our budget by quite a bit, but I digress.....). The kids loved playing in the dirt - even Raine, until she scooped a big handful and tried to eat it. That was a precious moment as a child care provider. At 1 pm it was naptime and all the kids went to their respective rooms... Reece in the bed in Rick's office, Ellie in Violet's room, Raine in her pack n play in my room, and Riley on the living room couch. AND THEY ALL WENT TO BED WITHOUT COMPLAINT! It was pretty amazing. I was even able to get a little work done! The bigger kids got up at about 3 and played quietly while I picked up things around the house... and the baby slept till almost 4:45! Holy naptime!

Once everyone was back in their proper homes, I sat down to relax for a little bit.... I had been a little nervous before today, but it all ended up being great. No problems. Maybe I will open up my own daycare. Then again, maybe not. ;)

And this evening, Rick helped me haul FOUR TONS of sand to our backyard. I shoveled while Rick pushed the wheelbarrow back and forth. Our grass arrived, too! I can't wait to see everything come together this weekend... and I can't wait to take photos of our finished yard for you to see. Stay tuned...!