Friends and Being An Aunt

Monday Kylee was invited over to a friends house from 10-4. We have never really had that opportunity happen before and Kylee was so excited. She had a great time with her friends. They did "sledding" on the stairs, played games, watch a movie, and enjoyed being together. It was so great to be able to send her to a house to play with people I knew she actually played with at school and were nice. Friends have been a struggle for Kylee to find and so it was a great opportunity for her to be able to go by herself and enjoy her friends. It was also an opportunity for the rest of us to figure out life without Kylee. It was weird knowing she wasn't at school, but other than that it wasn't too weird for me. However, I think it was for Tia. Those two do a lot of things together and have since Tia was born, so to know Kylee was at a friends and Tia was with us was a little weird and there were definitely points were Tia didn't quite know what to do with herself, but it also gave her time to do some 'big' sibling things she doesn't get to normally do like play a video game with dad and be the oldest in the pretend play the kids do.

Also on Monday, I finally got together with our neighbors and so the twins had a 'friend' over and so did I. Probably another reason why Tia was like "what am I supposed to do?" Anyway, it was so great to talk to my friend and for the twins (mainly Abby) to have a friend over. It was interesting to watch Abby interact with a friend and for them to figure out how to play. Then in turn watch how Kade handled that. Which, was pretty much playing when he wanted and doing his own thing when he didn't want to. Then Laura and I just got to chat. It is so nice to talk to someone else in a similar boat as me. We are definitely different and do different things, but both a mom to 10, 4, and newborns. Plus, she she believes in Christ and that she can pray and get answers and it was good. It was so good to connect. I really enjoyed it.

Another fun thing for me was Friday I got to run to Costco which is a rarity in itself, but I also shopped for Kitt while there and then ran out to her house to drop stuff off. I love being a sister. I always do, but Kitt is the first time I have had the chance to be supportive to a new mama and I love it. My baby is old enough that I have capacity to help her. Plus holding her new baby is so fun. I haven't ever really held anyone else's newborn and it is so peaceful. So, I brought soup for lunch, and supplies from Costco. We visited over lunch, put kiddos down for a nap (a short one for mine because we had to be back for the big girls), de-boned rotisserie chickens, and enjoyed each other. Man, I know Kitt is really having a hard time just with new baby stuff, but at the same time she is totally rocking it. Her boys are so lucky to have her and her to have them. I am also grateful for the reminder that its hard. Babies are wonderful and special, but they are hard. I am so grateful that I have a chance to be a big sister in this instance and enjoy taking care of my sister.  

I am learning more and more of this truth--I can't do it all exactly the way I want and every way I want, but what I can do is enough and I need to do what I can do. What I can do is still a blessing and I should use it because it is a gift. Sometimes more simply said "Better done than perfect."