Entering A New Era

After a failed job hunt and many sleepless nights, Kyle and I finally made the hardest decision we've had to make since Jack's birth. We decided that the best idea for us at this point in our lives is for me to stay at home with the boys. But that wasn't the hard part... if I'm a stay at home Mom, what does that make Janie?

Janie has been watching Jack since he was 8 weeks old and Scott since he was 6 weeks old. She is the only babysitter the boys have ever known and they love her as if she were their surrogate mother, which she has been to them 5 days a week, 10 hours a day. Wow. Telling Jack that he was going to be staying home with Mom from now on was heart wrenching. He was thrilled with the idea until he realized that it meant he wouldn't be going to see Janie as much. When he figured out that part of the equation, his response was first that it would make him very sad and second that "Janie's gonna cry" which of course made me cry. I don't know what we would have done these past three and a half years without Janie.

The day we found Janie, I had just learned that the daycare I had lined up for the previous 3 months before Jack was born had changed their prices and we would not be able to afford to send Jack there. We had 2 days to find him a new sitter or my maternity leave was going to run a bit longer than planned. Kyle's parents happened to be in town that weekend and after asking around, Kyle's dad learned that a woman named Janie watched kids and she lived in our same apartment complex. We met her that day and she has been watching Jack ever since. Janie and Jack have meant so much to one another over the years and we can't thank her enough for the loving care she has always given to both our boys. She has loved them as her own (her daughter Alyssa will tell you it's more like BETTER than her own!) since the moment she laid eyes on them and we thank God for her.

So as much as I am thrilled to have this opportunity to stay home with the boys and really be a full time mom for the first time, I am heart broken over pulling the boys from Janie. But we have promised Jack that he can go see her anytime that she says it's ok and we've also found some new little distractions to help keep Jack's mind off of how much he undoubtedly misses Janie.

Below you'll find pics of Holly and Emma, the two little girls I'll be watching here at the house along with the boys. Holly and Emma are such sweet girls and Jack and Scott love hanging out with them. They're no Janie, but they are great playmates!