happy valentines

So yet again, it's been a while since I've posted. In the words of Kidd Kraddick, "Get over it!". Anyways, I've been a bit preoccupied with work, unpacking, ignorant landladies, and catching up on my sleep. Now that I have a free moment, here's the 4-1-1 on the kids I'm babysitting.

First up is Walker, who will be 5 on August 19th (Matthew Grande's birthday!). He is very smart and athletic and loves it when I can give him my full attention. He is definitely his father's son, and has schooled me at ping-pong a few too many times (his dad is a tennis coach). He has an American accent for the most part, but some of his pronunciations are very Australian, like when he says "Miss Seerah", "baaackhand" (when we play ping pong he is constantly telling me "you have to hit it baaackhand!), and "baaasketball". He also says a lot of things that just sound like something an Australian would say, like, "My dad says I'm strong like a bull!". He is a cute kid but he sure likes testing his boundaries. It makes me feel good to know that he likes me and considers me a friend now - he was supposed to be in bed when I got there tonight but Kat said he wanted to stay up to see me, he wants to come play at my house even though I don't have a lot of toys (that's when you KNOW you're in - when they want to come to your house to play), and tonight when I put him to bed and told him I'd see him next Tuesday morning, he said "See ya lata, alligata!", which I have only heard him say to his dad when he leaves in the mornings. So yeah, it definitely feels good to know he likes me even though sometimes he's a pill and I have to put him in time out.

Then there's Faith, who's 2 years old (seen with her Pebbles hairdo). She is such a sweetie, and very easy to love. She doesn't require a lot of attention, and most of the time she is content to just sit there and watch Walker and me play. I'll have to get a better picture of her smile because it is adorable. And she LOVES chocolate milk - as long as she has a sippy cup full of it and a remnant of her baby blanket (it is torn into several pieces) she is perfectly happy. Like Walker, she sounds very Australian when she says my name. It makes my heart melt. I also love it when Walker calls her "Fayfy". He has no problem pronouncing his 'th's but Fayfy just sounds a lot cuter than Faithy. They don't always get along, but she's got spunk and can usually hold her own when he provokes her.

Talan is the baby of the family, he's about 6 months old. He is such a good baby, but things are definitely easier after he's gone down for his nap. He loves being tickled and poked by Walker, always giving a huge toothless grin. Tonight while I was giving him his bottle before putting him to bed he was just staring up at me with his beautiful brown eyes and I thought to myself that one person's loss is another person's gain. I don't think I quite fully mean that in the way that it sounds but I'm happy to have the opportunity to be with these kids.

And of course I can't forget the easiest member of the family to deal with - Texas. She can go to the bathroom by herself and feed herself and nap by herself - who wouldn't want to babysit her? By the looks of her sweet graying face she's got to be at least 6 or 7 years old (most Great Danes have a life expectancy of 6-8 years) and she's got a bum leg (probably due to hip dysplasia or something of the sort, which is very common in large dogs) so she's slow to get up. So she mostly just lays (lies?) around the house. And if you're wondering, yes I do know a lot an unusual amount of information about Great Danes because I did a research project on them in my Companion Animals class last semester. Anyways, she is such a good dog and always greets me with a kiss and a wagging tail when I come in. Then she follows me around for a few minutes, almost knocking me over, but I don't mind because why wouldn't I want a 100+ lb. dog doting on me? Tonight we shared the couch together after the kids were asleep and I began reading The Book Thief. When I heard the garage door open, she struggled to get off of the sofa and then stood alert, wagging her tail and waiting. It took Steve a couple of minutes to get inside, but she still stood there. I could tell her tail (haha) was getting tired but every time it started to slow down she'd pick up the pace, just in case the door would open right then. Is it weird that in this post about the kids I'm babysitting, I've written the most about their dog? I hope not. I've always wanted children and I've always wanted a [good] dog, and at this point in my life it seems more likely that I'll become a doggy mama before becoming a baby mama. Well this post went in a totally different direction than I thought it would but oh well. It's my blog. So there.

These pictures just don't do her size justice. I'll have to try and get one of her next to me so you can see how huge she is.

Now doesn't that look comfy?