Grandma and Grandpa Bassett

We have loved having my parents in our home. Ben and the kids went and picked them up from the airport Friday afternoon and we have them until tomorrow. I'm just going to jot down a few of our favorite things about and some memorable moments from having Grandma and Grandpa Bassett around.

1. Wild games of hide and go seek. Reid has been wanting to play this game for a while, and I have great memories of playing it with my whole family when we were kids, so I kept telling him he'd have to play it with Grandpa Bassett when he came to visit. Sure enough, the wait was worth it. Reid wasn't much into hiding though. He just wanted to find. My parents would jump out and say "boo" when he caught them, and they both tell me that was Reid's favorite part. I wouldn't know, because I just sat on the couch feeding Coraline. And Ben wouldn't know because, well, he hid a little too well. We weren't really sure if he was playing or not, but during the very first round he went and hid behind the storage shelves under the kids' bunk beds. He was under there for a good 30 minutes (the entire game). He had to start playing music on his phone in order for us to find him. Silly daddy. 

2. My parents have been loving on Coraline every chance they get. She just sleeps on my mom like a lump. Ben and I have hardly had to take care of her. Ben loves the extra time this gives him to play with Reid and Nell.

3. Tonight my parents watched all three kids and sent Ben and I out on a date. When we left the kids were "fishing" with Grandpa. Per Grandma's suggestion we bought gummy worms and sweedish fish, and the kids used a stick with a string and paper clip on it to go fishing. They were in heaven. 

4. It's hard to explain, but I think grandparents give you a chance to see your kids through someone else's eyes. Ben and I have always thought Nell is just full of personality (and sass), but we are obviously biased. My parents confirmed our suspicions though. Especially my mom, who just seemed to think Nell was the funniest thing around. Nell was eating up all the extra attention. Having grandparents around also helps put things into perspective. When Reid went on a swinging-his-arms-at-his-sister rampage, I could see my mom trying not to laugh. And when I asked Nell to drink her milk in the kitchen (not the front room) and her response was "never! never!" my mom did burst out in laughter. I know my job is to discipline (teach) my kids, but sometimes their misbehaviors are comical. 

5. I think my parents favorite Nell moment was tonight when she told my dad, "Grandpa, take your glasses off and then your face will be naked!" Yes, she is a goofy character. Also, she loves being naked. 

6. Another favorite Nell moment was yesterday when Nell realized she has two Grandmas and Grandpas. She was sitting on my lap at Church when she said she wanted to go sit by Grandma (my mom was next to me). So she started over to my mom and then paused, looked across the aisle at Grandma Szilagyi and then back to my mom and said "You're not Grandma!" I can't remember exactly what was said next, but there was about a five minute conversation that ended with a lot of "Two Grandmas and two Grandpas!" shouting. About twenty minutes later she also shouted "two daddys!", so there was some clearing up to do. 

7.  My parents watched the movie Coraline, and I'm not sure they knew what to make of it. Our Coraline isn't actually named after the character in the movie -- but it is one of Ben's favorite movies. When we were pregnant with Nell and driving back from the Milwaukee airport we read through a Parents magazine list of 100 unique names and Coraline happened to be on the list. I remember reading it to Ben (while mocking most the other names on the list), and we both kept it in our name bank after that. 

8. While putting the kids to bed the first night my parents were here Reid told Ben "I wouldn't want to sleep in the basement. There are ghosts down there." So it was super fitting that the next morning when the kids went downstairs to wake up Grandma and Grandpa my mom was hiding around the corner howling like a ghost. Both children immediately headed back upstairs. Even the next morning when I told Nell to go get them she had to double check, "Grandma's not a ghost?"  

"No Nell, she's not a ghost." 

"And Grandpa's not a bear?"

"No. They are just Grandma and Grandpa."

9. My mom was playing "baby" with the kids, which is a game Nell loves to play. I was in the nursery feeding Coraline, but I could hear their conversation. Let's just say Reid knows how babies eat! He wanted to eat like a baby (and subsequently he taught Nell to hold her doll to her chest when her babies are hungry).

10. I need a #10, but can't think of one right now. So, mom and dad ... leave one in the comments!