This week Tracey asked me to watch the kids the whole week.  Monday Liz came with me and it's always nice to have an extra hand.  Especially at naptime when I still can't bare to hear Dakota scream his head off if I put him in his crib.  I gather him, his two bedtime stuffed animals, and rock him to sleep.  He's still little and squishy enough to enjoy the feeling only a little one can bring a grandma.  While I am rocking him Jacob can usually wait patiently in his big boy bed for me to lay down with him.  But if I take too long I hear, "D'ma Rose, I need you!  D'ma Rose, I am not yelling!"  I can usually get to him quickly as Dakota usually is asleep in 5 minutes.  Liz takes over rocking duty when she comes to help.  Dakota no longer calls her Iz, he now calls her Aunt La La.  He's a funny kid, he talks more than Jacob did at 18 months, but that is because Jacob was never encouraged to talk, he would point and get what he wanted.  He has more than made up for that, he talks a mile a minute now.  Often saying to me, "remember when we..."  he loves to talk about what we did the day before.

This is Tracey's last week at work as she is due on the 14th.  I watched the kids by myself yesterday, Liz had a date with a girlfriend to go to Chicago.  It rained all day and the TV blew up so we were pretty much stuck indoors.  I rarely use the TV as a babysitter, but depend on getting the boys outdoors to play.  They are typical boys who love the outdoors, including our daily walk to the park.  We were only able to play on the porch and the excitement of our day was when the Electric meter reader came and read the meter.

Thankfully they both went to nap early and the only major incident was when Dakota hit Jacob (on accident) in the face with a toy vacuum cleaner.  Hopefully he won't have a shiner from that!  Jeremy got rained out from work and came home at 1:00 so I was able to go home early.

I was ready too.  Today Tracey wasn't feeling well  (LABOR??) so she stayed home.  I pretty much have been online. I really need to clean my house.  It's been raining for two days and very humid.  Everything feels sticky and wet. 

We did have Jacob at the trailer with us on Saturday night.  He loved theattention and as the oldest he will need the extra time.

Liz is helping with the last play of the season, they are doing Beauty and the Beast.  She's back stage again, and is painting the backdrops today.  Her boyfriend Mike is in New Orleans with their church repairing wind damaged houses.  She wanted to go too this time, but wanted to be around to help Tracey too. 

Here's a picture from her last play the Pride and Prejudice.  She was the aunt.  The costumes were excellent for this one.  She's the kid in the back.  We found her costume at the local Salvation army thrift shop.

Fingers crossed we get a new baby this week!!