Babysitting Fun

We’ve started a new babysitting co-op with a few of Nick’s friends. Five boys who all went to school together when they were 2-4. They’re slowly moving to new schools, but still like to get together and hang out. So every other week, a family opens their house to the boys from 5-9pm. The parents (minus the host parents) then get four hours of freedom and free babysitting.
So this week was our turn to host.

So 6 boys. All sweet, but none would listen to us! Figured they’d all stay together and trash the basement. Nope, they were everywhere. Upstairs, downstairs, crying, laughing. It was crazy. We got 4 of the 6 to the dinner table and then hearded them outside for some soccer. 6 boys, each with a soccer ball headed out the door. Chris in the front, me in the back. Once again, they all split. Some to the playground, some playing soccer. We needed a shepard dog to help round these kids up. Chris and I kept doing hand signals to each other to confirm how many we had with us. By 7:30, we were exhausted. Chris kept saying “just another hour and a half buys us 4 date nights before it’s our turn to baby-sit again!” Would we make it. Ahhh, the power of the tv and snacks. I asked them to all sit quietly on the couch and once everyone was quiet, I would get snacks and turn on the batman movie. Eureka – it worked!

The first parents to come at 9pm where the babysitters last week. They asked how it went and we said the right things. Then they began to chuckle and we let it all out “Oh my god –they wouldn’t listen to us! It was so much harder than I thought”. He He He. Right of passage coming for the next babysitters.