Sometimes we all require a big shove.

Today I am sending my children out into the world on their own. Well, not really on their own. They are going with Little T and his mom. You see, I've hired myself a babysitter.

Yeah, I know how weird that sounds. (Or maybe pathetic is the right word.) I'm a stay at home mom who babysits other children, and I've hired a babysitter for my children. But! I have a good reason!

The children I watch are younger than mine. A lot younger. They are 3 and 10 months. And in case you don't currently have children in that age range, the difference between 3 and 5/6 is big. At 5/6 they can ride bikes, swing themselves, play at the pool and generally do big-kid stuff. But the little ones, well, they require a lot of hands on involvement. So I have to restrict the activities we do during the weekdays to things that can be done by a 3 year old, and that require the kind of hands on involvement that can be given by a parent holding a squirming baby.

So my thought was, if I can find a parent who had children my children's age and older, then the kids could do big-kid stuff. Which is what they are doing today. They are going to a movie. And then maybe some play time afterwards where they can run, jump, and hopefully not kill themselves. And I'll be available to do more with the 3 year old - like play Thomas trains while balancing a 10 month old on his teeny little feet so he can practice standing.

That's the plan anyway. I hope all goes well. My daughter is nervous about going, and has practically begged me to not make her go. She's too shy, she said. But I've stuck to my guns on this one and am making her go. She will have fun. She will, in fact, love it. But her nervousness is making it hard for her to take the leap of faith that is required to start something new. So I'm pushing her out the door. (Bad mom, bad mom!) What she doesn't know is that if I were in her place, I too would be so nervous about going that I would need someone to push me out the door. (I think I'll tell her, and then give her a big shove.)

Oh, and also, I've hired the babysitter so that I can have some peace. Four kids who fight constantly is about to kill me. I can't wait for school to start again. How far away is September again?