Maaaad props to all you Mamas out there! Tonight I babysat my 1 1/2 year old nephew Finn all the way from play time at the park, through dinner, bath & bed time (ps I swear he was having a blast on the swing… 
)
None of this was out of the ordinary but Ben usually comes with at least part of the time and entertains Finn while I get his dinner ready, teaches him things like slurping so he’ll eat more veggies, runs his bedtime bottle up to me while I get him ready for bed…you get the gist.
Well tonight it was all me, baby! It went just fine, Finn was a perfect angel per usual, but it was also slightly exhausting doing everything myself. And that was just one night!
So, here’s an extra happy belated Mother’s Day to you all. From Finn and me to you. 
Time to go scarf a Carrot Cake Larabar for dinner. The babysitter’s hunger level is definitely not top priority for a toddler – aka dinnertime is after baby’s bed time!
Goodnight!
~~~~~
Do you have children and/or want children? How old were you when you had kids?
I think I want two kids. I have NO idea how my parents were able to raise 3, busy-as-hell children. It was madness, I tell you!
I can’t believe how big Finn is getting! What a nice present to take him off your SIL’s hands for the night.
I’m sure this was priceless for her.
Um, I love Finn’s ladybug hat!
I teach third grade, and while I LOVE my job. It’s definitely suppressed my maternal urges for a long time. Most days I leave work thinking, “how in the world am I supposed to do this with kids?”
Glad you had a great time with Finn! He’s so cute!
Motherhood certainly has its benefits, but hot food (for mamas, at least) is not one of them! I actually never thought I wanted kiddies, and now I have two. Life has a way of figuring these things out on its own
nope. no kids. never wanted any. i kept wondering if i was gonna wake up one morning with that overwhelming “i must have children RIGHT NOW!!” feeling that i so often hear about, but nope….nothing! and that’s ok by me! that Finn is cute as a bugs ear! have you ever tried a carrot cake Clif Bar? if not, you should!
i keep thinking i may wake up with that desire but dont have it yet… hmm
As usual, I want to steal your nephew.
I have one little boy at the moment, who is the light & love of my life. I was 32 when I had him, and while I’d like to have another one, I’m starting to feel like I’m getting too old to have babies. My son’s been asking if we can have another baby (he wants a brother), so maybe my husband & I should get working on that!
I like the idea of a big family but I think 2 or 3 is my max without overwhelming myself! Babysitting is the best birth control…
One child here. Almost 2 months old!
I was 25 when I had her… 3 weeks shy of 26.
Hubby is 30 though… it was our plan to have kids before he turned 30…. His birthday was about 3 weeks before she was born.
Hopefully we will have another child in the future.. like 3 or 4 years from now… Doing what I do now – but doubled… would make for a zombie of a mommy.
i teach 15 ballet classes a week to 3 year olds and i thought that would be enough for awhile. we got married last june when i was 26 and we got quite a surprise this january. i will be 27 and my hubby will be 35 when we have our first this september and i already can’t wait for the 2nd!
i don’t know how mother’s do it! i babysat my nephew for only a few hours and i was EXHAUSTED!
i’m on the fence about having kids…i have far too many fears (about pregnancy, birthing, and parenting) and at the moment.
I had my daughter when I was 27. She’ll be one in July. I work full time. Although my life is busy, I can’t imagine my life without her.
Awww, Finn’s a cutie! I probably want kids, but I don’t think about it much right now. I’ve got time.
ha, i think it’s easier when you start from the beginning-so you kinda figure it out as you go. we have a daughter who is 18 mths (was 27 when she was born) and are expecting our 2nd in november. the days can be exhausting-especially now that i’m pregnant-but as everyone says-it’s worth it and fun in it’s own way. who knows how many kids we will have. i used to think 0 but clearly that changed
Two will work for me… four works for my husband. I think we’ll settle on three, Lord willing. It seems like there’s a baby boom out there — I’m the only one of my close friends and family w/o kids and not pregnant. We’re just not ready!
Finn is lucky to have a very involved and caring aunt close by him. We have three boys, oldest is five and twins are two. We planned to stop after two but nature and God made the decision that we needed three. We had our first son when I was 28 and the twins when I was 31. Three and half good years of marriage under our belt before we entered parenthood.
No kids for me, but I know what you mean about kids being exhausting. I’m always just “fun aunt” around my nieces with no responsibilities, but they always wear. me. out. I really don’t know how single moms or dads do it.
My buddy is 11 and soon to be 12 this month. I had her “later”. She is awesome but kids change everything. I Know you don’t believe that, cause people without kids just have this switch turned off until they do have them!
My mom raised 9 by herself and so I just think single parents like me, who only have one or two and think its SO HARD are weenies!
ps, Fin looks like his grandma!!! So cute!
I have one daughter, I was 21 when I had her, she is now 13. I would like one more, but husband isn’t so sure, so we haven’t. I did everything backwards, got pregnant first, found my husband, he adopted my daughter. We haven’t had any of our marriage without a kid, so that will be weird after she is grown. I love her and don’t regret having her even if my situation at the time wasn’t ideal. Things worked out for us in the end!
And it really is easier to start out from the beginning with your kid, rather than babysitting someone else’s. You know your own kid better, and learn what they need as they grow. You’d be surprised at how much you know when you have one, you gain experience very quickly!
No desire whatsoever to have kids of my own. I have never really wanted to and I feel that there are way too many kids out there who need loving parents already. I would love to adopt someday!
I have a niece who will be 4 in August and I love her to death but I also love to give her back to her mama when she is cranky!
No kids for me and after almost 25 years of marriage, I have no regrets.
I have a 15 mo old! B U S Y is right! I was 25 when I had him. It is so exciting seeing him grow, change, and learn every day! Another child would be nice but not for a couple of years, I wanna enjoy the quality one-on-one time with the one I have, and not to mention 2 would be exhausting right now! haha
Thanks for the Mother’s Day greeting, Kristin! I’m the mother of two terrific girls who are 26 and 23 years old. I was 35 when I had the first, and 38 when I had the second. I wouldn’t change anything. I had a full, and busy life before having kids, so when I had my girls I was ready to devote full time to them.
We have 3 beautiful kids, ages from 14 to 1! Wouldn’t trade them for all the riches in the world
Handling your own kids really is much easier, though not less work, than someone elses. You have your own routine and you’re in your own home. On the other hand, you have to get up with them every night as infants, and every time they need you as they get older. Still, there is nothing more rewarding, to me at least, than the love of your children.
PS Finn is soooo stinkin’ cute!!!!
I am 27 years old and have one daughter (9 months). She is soooo good that I feel like I could raise 6 of her, but I’d prefer to keep it in the 2-3 child range. The thought of putting one through college is already giving me palpatations!
I had my daughter at 25. I work full time and my life is BUSY! I think I could be fine with just one child, but I think hubby wants two….we’ll see about having another when this one is around 3 1/2.
Thanks for the encouragement!
I have a 20 month old and am 24 weeks preggo…My husband has been working crazy hours lately and boy do I understand what you mean! Little ones are so tiring!! 
It’s worth it though…Can’t imagine life without my Sadie. 
I think Finn’s hat is pretty priceless.
We’ll have our first this summer/early fall. I’ll be 27, my husband will be 26. Good ages, I think. And we’re planning on two. Seems like a fair number – not too many, not too few.
We got married when we were 20 and knew we wanted to have kids sooner rather than later. At 27 we have 3 little loves….they are 4 1/2, 3 and 6 months. We don’t mess around! Life is pure chaos and it’s only just beginning! It’s hard, but every exhausting day is worth it.
i’m 29 and keep waiting for that strong desire to have kids but it hasn’t come yet. i work too much still and am waiting until i’m completely ready both emotionally and financially….. we shall see….
When we got married we said we wanted four (yeah, ha! I know).
But we also had a “five years of fun” plan – five years of marriage to just enjoy each other, travel, etc. – as it turned out, actually, we’ve used a lot of the time for both of us to go back to school. Now seven years later, it’s still just us and we love it, but we still want kids. Seeing how I’m 29 and he’s 30 now, four may not be in the plan for us, but hopefully at least a couple will be. And we may have a couple and then adopt a couple – who knows?! What I do know is that the “five years of fun” plan was the greatest idea ever. I wish I could go back in time and kiss whoever told me to think about that one! 
I want to have 2 kids, not quite yet though. I know what you mean about kids being exhausting, I often babysit my niece and nephew and I am whipped after even just a few hours… makes me wonder how I’m ever going to be able to be the actual mother of a child lol
I have two girls, 3 and 1.5. I had my first daughter two days after my 21st birthday and was almost 23 when I had my second. My husband and I both want a third. We always say if #3 is a boy, we’re done… and if it’s a girl, we’re still done.
hehe Kristin, I have 3 nephews (7, 5 1/2, and 3) and occasionally (VERY occasionally) baby-sit them all overnight. I barely live.
I’m not sure if I want kids, but I’m leaning towards maybe no? But I do have baby fever right now from several friends with newborns! Also I am almost 30 and not married yet, so I feel like I’m running out of time and I don’t even know if I want any lol!
I have 2 kids ages 20 months and 7 weeks…yeah, talk about crazy. And my husband works 2nd shift as a cop…therefore eveniings are all on ME. It’s crazy, I know all about not eating or getting anything else done until the go to bed!
I am lucky enough to be a stay-at-home mom. I can’t imagine working and taking care of the kids and house. We have 3 (6 year old twins and a 2 1/2 year old). Twins are 1 boy and 1 girl . . . youngest is a boy. I had them when I was 23. I get TONS of help from my husband because when you start with 2 he has no choice!
Awww..Finn is adorable! I love his little ladybug hat! So cute!
I most definitely want children really badly. I have an extremely small family so I definitely want to have children so I can expand my family. My fiance and I would like to have 2 or 3. I’m thinking 2 might be more resonable. I cannot wait to become a mom.
Yep. Got two of them. Yep. EXHAUSTING! But they are fun, too. And fill your life with so much.
I have an 18 month old little boy, and had him when I was 30. I always thought I wanted 3 kids, but that was before I had one! Now I’m thinking 2 will be good
I will tell you though that it is more exhausting to babysit than to take care of your own. My nieces wore me out, but you get into a routine with your own and it’s all good!
I have three precious little girls that I’m grateful to be able to stay home with. My oldest will be five next month and my identical twin girls (surprise!) will be three at the end of July. I CANNOT believe they are so big already. Contemplating one more (GASP!!!!!) but afraid .it could be two again.
We had our first when I was 30 (we waited seven years b/c like you, we loved to travel and wanted to get as much of that in before settling into parenthood – - great decision!!!)
p.s. Motherhood is exhausting but soooooo rewarding and you enjoy it much more when it’s your own child – babysitting was always much more draining to me!
He is so cute! I have two girls, ages 4 1/2 and 3, and another baby due this September. (I am 30 now). So yes, i totally understand how crazy it can be! But it’s all worth it, of course
Ps- Can Ben pass on some of those tricks to get them to eat their veggies?
I have two, a boy and a girl, who I had at 29 and 30. They turned 4 1/2 and 5 1/2 this month (they are 12 months and 12 days apart). For now we are happy having two healthy children who are pretty independent and play very well together. They do keep me busy, but being a mother is what I’ve always wanted to be and they make life so much fun.
I have one child, who will turn 1 in July. I was 32 when I had her which was the perfect age for us. We were married for 6 years before we had her and we really enjoyed our alone time, traveling, etc. We also flipped a house, bought a new one, and updated that one too.
It is exhausting (and I only work par time), but so worth it. She brings me more joy than words can describe. I think we would like 1 more, but not any time soon!
Love Finn’s hat!
I do in-home-daycare for 4 kids… ALL BOYS and have an almost 3 year old son to throw in the mix as well. It’s very busy, fun, and exhausting; but as I near my 29th birthday I’m getting the ‘itch’ to have another one. It would be nice to have some estrogen on my side. 
I’m 26 and 32 weeks pregnant with our first baby (a girl!). I’ll be 27 when she’s born in July. We waited two year after we got married to begin the parenthood journey. We agreed to have two kiddos, but there is some talk about a third only if we have a second girl. My husband is the last in line and would really like to have the family name carried on. We’ll cross that bridge later.
I have one! A sweet baby girl. Nora is amazing, but I’m also confused how my parents did it w/ three of us growing up! I probably on my way though.
I have one nine year old son named Parker. I had him when I was 19… way too young! But his dad and I eventually got married and I graduated college (twice) so it all worked out for the best! Btw the way, I remember the My Buddy and My Girl commercials from when I was little! The song was SO CATCHY! LOL!
Ha ha! Your post cracked me up! I always say, I go to work (as a police officer for 8 hours) then go home and my real job begins-Mom! That job is way harder and more exhausting than locking up bad guys!
We have two kids, an almost-6 year old daughter and a 2.5 year old son. I was 26 when I had my daughter. I always thought I wanted 3 kids but now that we have two, I know we are exactly where we should be. No more for us. But, I love ‘em with everything I am, even if they tire me to no end
I had my son at the age of 41. It has been a real adventure. My husband and I wish we could have had 2 to 3 kids. But we didn’t get married until late in life, and my son was our honeymoon baby.
With my age (43 now), I don’t want to go through pregnancy again. But, being a MOM is awesome.
No kids for me yet, but if I can have twins and pop 2 out at once that would be great and I would probably settle for 2 kids at that point. However, 3 is my ideal number
LOL LOVE that ladybug hat! No kiddos for me yet. Love kids, but I joke that nannying throughout college was the best form of birth control!
I did marathon sitting sessions where I’d have the kids for 3 days in a row, including nights while the parents were traveling for work or on vacation and quickly learned that I’m not ready for this 24/7/365 yet! Maybe once I hit 30 I will be ready 