I get by with a little help from my friends....

Having 4 kids is like trying to control a tornado.  Once you have 4, girls no less, you just run for the most secure room in the house and commence praying.  Truth be told, we wouldn't have it any other way.  Brooke and I find peace in the chaos because we know it wont be like this for long.  Some day Brooke and I will have to beg the girls to hang out with us.  It is nice on that rare occasion for Brooke and I to get away for dinner or a movie.  When we do get out by ourselves, we almost always end up talking about the girls.  For a brief moment  though it is like we are dating again before the weight of the world was on our shoulders.  Sometimes work gets in the way and we need to have someone watch the girls so we can do our jobs. A chapter calls me somewhere else in the US and Brooke has to run and do something at Seton.  Neither instance, the date night or the work day, would be possible without the help of two very important people.

Brooke Ward-

Brooke and I met when she was a big timer in the Greek Community at UK.  It really was a relationship formed by fusion.  My Brooke had been in town and was having issues with Caroline, who at the time was still in her Mommy's belly.  So, knowing we had a little Reagan at home who was going to be at the hospital as well, I looked at Brooke who was in my office and said "you re coming with me (to watch Reagan)!"  I guess she has been along ever since.  She became our go to girl for house sitting, dog sitting, and most importantly, baby sitting.  When the Brookes first met they were in two different parts of their lives.  My Brooke was new to a town, professional, wife, mother.  The other Brooke was holding on to the last few party years in college, single, and not sure where she wanted to go in life.  While Brooke Ward enjoyed watching my kids, the friendship part wasn't as prevalent.  Brooke Ward then started coming over to watch shows on TV, the girls started to get real excited to see her, Brooke found herself a new man, soon she would graduate and become a nurse, and yes we were expecting again.  By the time Baylor Grace came around we knew that there was no one who knew our two girls better than Brooke.  She became Baylor's Godmother and in many ways, all of the girls Godmothers.  At her wedding, it was our girls she asked to be the flower girls bypassing some in her own family.  Brooke never leaves our house without telling them that she loves them.  When Hadley was born, Brooke was the only one in the room with us.  She is every bit a part of this family as someone can be.  She is going on vacation with us next month.  We love her with all of our being and putting aside the fact of the total amount she has helped my Brooke, the joy she brings my girls cannot be measured.

Callie Hays-
Callie is Brooke Ward's friend from her sorority and valedictorian of her nursing class. The funny thing is, the first time she came over she was afraid to hold Caroline.  She didn't know Brooke, never seen Reagan or Caroline, and barely knew me.  It wasn't long after that, that Callie started coming over as well.  She is better with the kids than just about anyone I have ever known.  My girls truly love their Callie.  She is one of the first people invited to all the parties and she almost always comes.  The girls get so excited when Callie comes to play.  I've watched her with the girls too because sometimes she comes to help me while I am working.  She walks the perfect balance between being a friend and being a Mom.  I have no doubt that someday she will make a great mother of her own. Until then, she has become a second (or third) mother to my girls.  I honestly think that my Caroline loves her Callie more than anyone.  She gets so excited to be around Callie and lights up when Callie comes in the room.  Callie has been there to see a lot of personal family moments- like the crazy family concerts at the family gatherings- and joins right in.  She has seen us laugh, she has seen us cry, she has seen good times, and bad.  I am thankful for Callie.

They say one of the first things you need to do when you find out you're pregnant is find a good babysitter.  Brooke and I are lucky we have two.  And in reality, they are much more than just the babysitter, they are family.  I hope we do all we can to stay in each other lives forever.  I can see my girls watching their kids when they get older.  Who knows where our roads may lead us but Brooke and I are so thankful that the good Lord brought them into our house. I wouldn't wont to begin to actually calculate the tab we owe them for all the freebies they gave us watching our kids. We love you girls (Callie and Brooke) you mean so much to our family.