Babysitting Team

Our family has been looking forward to today all week long--ever since Susan's cousin Todd phoned to see if we'd be available to babysit Todd and Trista's almost-seven-month-old son, Trae, overnight tonight. Suzanna, who just recently took some elective classes at school on babysitting, immediately briefed her sisters on the basics, and they all three began to make plans for Trae's stay in our home. Throughout the afternoon today, they peppered Susan with inquiries about how much longer it would be before Trae's arrival. They were excited.

And so were we. It's been many years since Susan and I have had diapers to change and bottles to make and baby rattles to shake, and it was fun to re-experience that again tonight. It was fun, too, to watch the girls interact with Trae and to observe their seriousness about the task of caring for a baby and to hear their reflections (e.g., Hillary, while rocking Trae quietly: "When he grabs my thumb, it's almost as though he were my very own baby"). Suzanna has a sore throat, so she gamely kept her distance most of the night but offered advice from afar to her siblings. Abigail and Hillary vied for time with Trae, leaving Susan and me with just moments to enjoy feeding him and tickling him and holding him.

Trae is a smiley little guy, very patient with the onslaught of affection from our kids and easily acclimated to an unfamiliar house with so many strange faces (one of which is bearded!!). Trista will pick him up in the morning before we leave for Sunday school and church, but for now he's sleeping soundly in our bedroom. Here are some highlights from his first night at the Mobergs':

Tactile Trae gets to know the unfamiliar bearded dude.

Trae finds his toes to be entertaining--and is still limber enough to stick them in his mouth, should he care to.

Abigail changes Trae's diaper following Suzanna's instructions while I monitor Trae's safety throughout the procedure.

Hillary feeds Trae while seated in the very rocker in which her own parents often fed her as a baby! That was only six years ago . . .

Ditto Abigail, although that was eight years ago. She's very "in the moment." It's difficult not to be at peace with a content baby in one's arms!

Suzanna, Abigail, and Hillary keep a collective watchful eye on Trae, who is on the verge of entering Slumber Land (the state of consciousness, not the furniture store).