My Babies

My grandkids are the reason I exist, seriously. I am so lucky that all four of them live relatively (within an hour of my house) close. Many weekends I get to see all four of them, and it's just the very best! They wear me out but I wouldn't have it any other way!

(Quick overview - Jay and Avaree are my son Jimmy and his wife Tara's kids, Jace and Connor are my daughter Sabrina and her husband Mike's boys. My daughter Kirstin and son Steven haven't met their 2 baby-per-kid minumum yet).

The picture is all 4 of my babies! From the left, Connor is a year old, Avaree is 10 mos (look at the size difference between Connor and Avaree! He is a gentle giant and Avaree is just a dink!) Jace is 2 and Jay is 2-1/2. See how much God loves me?

Jace is just the most gentle child I have ever seen. He can fuss with the best of them but is so, so sweet. He is definitely the sweetest of all my grandkids and has Auntie Kirstin all wrapped up. They are buddies!

Whenever he is around my in-laws he just goes up to these old people and climbs into their laps and tells stories to them. I mean, my father in law is 86 and has missing fingers and other just life stuff. My mother in law is 84 and has Parkinsons and her head is tilted. This has to be scary as heck for any kid, but not Jace. He is just the best. Patient, kind and loving. Such a joy! Unless you're trying to get him to eat, then it gets dicey. He is a really picky eater. Sabrina handles it well though and he really does get green veggies, he just doesn't know it.

Jay and Jace are very best friends and whenever they are together they just run and giggle, it's the cutest thing. Connor wants to be grown up so bad! He will crawl after the two older boys giggling his little diaper off and trying so hard to catch up. Jay will always stop and turn around and say "c'mon Connor!" without realizing his little cousin can't get up and run yet.

It won't be long now, though, and it's a good thing that Jace is so nice to his little brother, because Connor is a beast and will be bigger than him pretty quick! Connor is a sweetie, though, and the happiest baby ever. EVER. He had tubes put in his ears on a Thursday afternoon and then on Saturday just hanging out with the bigger boys and trying to eat the dog's biscuits. Sabrina told me that his procedure was delayed for two hours and he didn't get to eat from midnight Wednesday to 2:30 pm Thursday and he never fussed. Now this boy is the opposite of Jace when it comes to food. Connor will eat anything, anywhere at anytime. He prefers everything and constantly!

Avaree is most definitely a princess and very much her big brother's opposite. She is sweet and cute and cuddly and has Papa wrapped around her tiny little finger ALREADY. My husband Jim has always been tight with the boys and wrestles and runs around with them, but once Avaree started showing her personality he was a goner. Definitely a diva in the making! The funny thing is that when Jay was little and he got ME all wrapped up (the first time he smiled at me I promised him his first car) Jim made fun of me. Uh huh. Avaree has no idea she is so tiny and it's just the cutest thing when she gets up and starts cruising around pushing her little doll carriage. It is hilarious.

Jay is, well, Jay. He is my monkey butt and my boy. Basically he is hell on wheels and just has a great time in life. He is going to be an athlete, he just can't wait (mom and dad are both athletes). He loves balls and is learning to play catch, instead of just throw and retrieve. He got his first baseball glove and is quite proud of it. When he sees older boys playing basketball or soccer he just goes up and joins the game. No fear. AT ALL. Kinda scary, really. Jimmy has to watch the Cars movie with Jay everyday and the Jay sings the songs in the movie. It is just too cool. Jay was cuddly for about 5 minutes once.

For anyone but me. He will always cuddle with me and sing songs and kind of instictively knows when he has to be gentle with me. One day a week or so ago I was home in bed with a flare and Jimmy came over to work with Jim and brought the kids with him for Kirstin to watch. My bedroom door was closed but he busts in and climbs into bed with me (taking his shoes off first because he knows better) and cuddles up to me, kisses my hand and says "ok G-ma? Jay kiss you better." No one had told him I was sick. He is used to climbing into bed with us in the morning and watching Mickey Mouse when they lived with us, so it's not like if G-ma is in bed she must be sick. It's just amazing to me.

He is very two, though, and has moments of being a total jerk. But no one is allowed to say anything about him around me! He is NOT a butthead! He is perfect, and he knows his G-Ma loves him more than anything! But I also don't take any crap from him, and he knows that, too.

I am really objective about all 4 of my kids, and am proud of the people that they are, but I know what their flaws and challenges are. But there is no objectivity about my babies. They are all perfect and can do no wrong. And that drives my kids nuts. So my mission is accomplished and my life is complete!