My Melted Heart

I thought you would like this picture of Ben, Finn and Barrett...the three little guys I nanny for. They are particularly darling right now, each of them going through the cutest phases. All three of them will have a birthday in the next few weeks, making them 6, 4, and 2 officially. I know I've blogged about them before, but lately they are killing me with funny things they are saying! I've been with them for a year and a half now and they are growing more adorable by the day! I can say that because I get to play with them two days a week and then I get to say bye-bye until next week! I get the highlights and not the melt-downs....it's a beautiful thing.

Recently they've visited our church a few times and they are so full of questions afterwards. Finn is particularly into the music they sing in children's church and now whenever we're in the car, he asks me if we can listen to "Jesus music"!! It melts my heart every time. Today as I was strapping him into his booster seat after pre-school, he looked out the window and said with great joy, "Hey! My school has a cross on the roof and that reminds me of Jesus!" Ohhhhh, I couldn't even take it! I just love his little beaming face and the innocence in that seemingly simple but profound statement. I don't know how many times he's seen that cross, but today it was like a revelation for him. How sweet.

One of my favorite things about nannying for little boys is that they ADORE Travis and he thinks they are hilarious. We watch them at night, twice a month, so their Mom and Dad can have a date night and they LOVE when Travis comes with me. He plays crazy games, indulges them with any sport, and tells them funny stories. They cannot get enough of him. When Travis is with me, we always tuck the boys into bed and pray with them. Last Saturday night we were watching them and Travis took the big boys while I took Barrett. As I was walking quietly down the stairs, I could hear Ben saying his prayers and asking God to "please bless Mommy, Daddy, Finn, Barrett, etc....." I listened as he went down the list of family members and then I melted again when he said, "And please bless Stephanie and Travis and Ryley..." He prayed for us and he prayed for our dog! I swear I floated down the rest of the stairs and I had one of those moments with God when it dawned on me, I am right where He wanted me, in a mission field with 3 of the cutest little boys you've ever seen. My silly job matters because of moments like these. Their little hearts are so tender to the Lord right now, I just can't help but love it. And to hear my sweet husband praying with them and answering their questions....it's almost more than a girl can take!

Today after Barrett's gym class, he and I met Travis for lunch. This has become our Tuesday routine. We have just enough time to eat lunch before we have to pick up Finn, and Barrett loves when we get to meet Travis. He is in my absolute FAVORITE stage right now, just starting to talk coherently. He says the funniest things and is starting to be able to put sentences together. It's so cute! The downside however, is that he is constantly asking "why?" now, almost after every thing I say to him. If he wasn't so darling it would be irritating, but he's still so little to me that I love it. Before we ate, Travis asked Barrett if we should pray for our food. Barrett's been doing this for awhile now, folding his little hands and closing his eyes, but in the last few days he's added a new twist. While we pray, he tries to copy what we're saying, mumbling the whole time with his hands folded and his eyes closed! It's so sweet!! Travis got the biggest kick out of him and we decided tonight that we can't wait for a little one this age!!

I love my job so much and I feel very grateful for these little boys to be in my life, along with their Mom and Dad. I get so much of my "baby fix" satisfied in them every week! Some people wonder if it's hard to be around kids so much, when we are hoping so badly to be parents. I would answer that by saying, it isn't harder, in fact, it's almost sweeter. I don't take my time with them for granted. They are growing up, and one day soon won't need me anymore. So until then, I love each day I get with them and I am so thankful to be getting slobbery kisses and big hugs on a regular basis! How could I not love that?