Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful Father's Day Weekend! We had a great day, and it was jam-packed with a lot of love, and dare I say... relaxing! I got to spend parts of the day with my dad, who has been battling pneumonia for the past couple of weeks. It was so good to go to lunch with him yesterday and to spend time talking and laughing, without him feeling like he couldn't speak much due to lack of energy or constant coughing.

Father's Day Fun

 I knew that my dad wouldn't really be up to a full afternoon of family time just yet, as he's still recovering, so I was happy for him to be able to rest after church and our family lunch. We had planned to spend the late afternoon and evening with my in-laws, which is always a lot of fun. A wonderful family from our church invited us over to swim in their pool, which was amazing- it was nearly 100 degrees yesterday! Blah! 

We beat the heat and swam and played for a couple of hours, and I have to say- it felt so good to chill out. When my oldest was a toddler, I was a classic helicopter mom, hovering over his every move and every breath. After the birth of our second child, nearly five years later, I mellowed a bit and have been able to enjoy watching other family members help look after my kids.

Sacha, Baby S, Cousin Lucie (S' Godmother)

It Takes a Village

It was always hard for me to understand the concept of 'it takes a village' to raise kids. I always thought that it was strictly my responsibility as their parent (and that of my husband) to raise our kids- to change their diapers, feed and bathe them, to keep them from walking into walls or falling out of chairs at the kitchen table. Somewhere along the line (after many, many talks with my husband, who encouraged me to let go a little), something clicked, and I realized- these people are my family... they're on my team, and it's okay to let them help. After all, they're such a big part of our lives, they're helping to nurture, shape, and educate my kids- they belong to me, but they also belong to us a whole family unit.

The dynamic is always a bit different with my family as opposed to my husband's, but the fact remains- everyone loves our kids, and not a single person in either family ever hesitates to help out. My kids are so loved, I don't know if I could even describe to them how much- I'm constantly amazed by the ways our family members show them. 

Yesterday, I watched my mother-in-law and Cousin Lucie care for S in the pool, while hubby and I just relaxed, and B swam with his buddy. I ate dinner (with a frosty margarita in hand) sitting down at the table for more than five minutes, and let the kids play without running to check on them every ten seconds. The village (our village) stepped up, helped out & helped us enjoy family time.

I don't forget for even one minute how blessed we are to have that kind of love and support in our lives.