Adventures in Babysitting: "I'm 2, Gimme A Break!"

I'm amazed, daily, by how quickly Megan and Bridget are growing up, and how much they help out when they see the need. They offer the babies unsolicited kisses, hugs, toys, scrubbings at bathtime, and words of encouragement ("Tessa, good job!! I didn't know you knew how to say Dada. What a big girl. Mommy, did you know Tessa can say Dada??!!").

They also offer them a LOT of Cheerios. This is normally no big deal and actually a big help while the babies are in their high chairs waiting for their meal or just plain waiting while I (or Matt - he does cook a lot!) make dinner for everyone else. The girls will color at the dining room table and take turns popping Cheerios in the babies' mouths.

So, I figured I was safe asking Bridget to feed the babies while they sat in their high chairs this morning. They were fussing a little bit and needed a little refill on their tray, and Bridget is usually the girl for that job. I took the opportunity to brush my teeth and get dressed, and realized that it was suddenly very quiet. That's good, but then I heard Bridget say, "Mommy, they have food now. Annie has a lot of food!" Hmmmm. Yeah, I had to check that out.

I put down my toothbrush mid-brushing and came downstairs to find a very proud Bridget sitting cross-legged on top of the table between the high chairs, Annie and her highchair tray completely covered with a mountain of rice cereal, Tessa's tray somewhat covered, and the remainder of the rice cereal box on the floor. I guess I should have been more specific when I asked Bridget to feed them. (For you infant-less people, or people like Sara who somehow skip the whole baby food stage altogether, rice cereal is a fine powder that's supposed to be mixed with water or formula or breast milk, and it's nothing like Cheerios!) Annie didn't seem to mind the mess or how dry her breakfast was, and was busy snacking away.

Added to my to-do list: cleaning up that huge mess and two messy babies. Pushed down on the list: getting dressed.

It's easy to forget that my underpaid mother's helpers are only 2 and 3 years old. This kind of chaos comes with the territory when you have toddlers babysitting.