It Takes a Village

A couple of summers ago, we went away for a weekend with another family, at the time we had one kid and they had two. Several times during our trip, we commented on how the ratio was perfect 4 adults to 3 children.  A little less than one child per adult.  None of the adults ever felt overwhelmed and the kids were always occupied and happy.
Now we have two kids and that beautiful ratio only exists when other people are around.  In our house, it's man-on-man defense.

But we're lucky because we live 5 minutes from my parents, 5 minutes from my brother's family, have a grandma who comes to visit almost weekly from Pennsylvania.  And we have tons of friends who actually like our kids.

Rainbow Manicure!

The past couple of weeks have been tough for my ratio.  Mike was away on business for close to a week and overlapped with my parents vacation for a little bit, so I was down a few adults.  I needed some backup. These are the times when I'm happy for my 'village.'

One friend took Jenna for a manicure on a day when I was busy to give Mike a little break.
Another friend came to my house, picked Jenna up and took her for a play date with her two girls, and then returned her to me - all because Alex was napping! (Thank KC!) Another friend consistently picks Jenna up from school so I don't have to schlep Alex out. (RB xoxo)
Of course, it's reciprocal, at times, we (I) am the one watching a handful of kids for various reasons, ranging from friends just needing a break to childcare falling through.

Melissa's Daycare - Kids look happy!

Sometimes I dream about living in a kibbutz or a multifamily house just so we can share all the kid duties....or maybe there's something to be said about Sister Wives hmm...