Something about Nephews...

In the last few weeks, we've had the privilege of spending some good quality time with 3 of my nephews. These handsome little dudes are from my older sister. She and her hubby were blessed to have 3 boys in the space of 14 months. Yes, that is blessed!!!! :o)) They are now 4 and almost 3 respectively. My sister is starting to see through the fog, now that they are a bit older.

Their oldest, Conall, is 4. Keziah is exactly 9 months younger than he is. And the two boys, Declan and Calin, are exactly 9 months younger than Kez. So that means when they are here, I am babysitting a 4 year old, a 3 year old, 2 two year olds, and a 1 year old. Can anyone spell i-n-s-a-n-e?? Actually, I don't need your help to spell it because believe it or not, when they are here, I am far from insane. I know, hard to believe, but let me show you.

First off, Conall and Keziah are two peas in a pod. They have always gotten along. They are very close and love each other dearly. When they are together, it is non-stop play. They both have wild imaginations, so they are always on an adventure. I very rarely need to intervene. And I am talking about playing all day long. That leaves Keziah completely exhausted by supper. But what a great reason to be tired!!

While those two are playing, there are Declan and Calin, who are busy doing their own things. When my sister drops them off, by the time she has her shoes off, the boys are long gone, into the playroom. They are so much fun!! Here's Kez, with these two monkeys. I do hear her ask Conall every once in awhile, "Conall, which one is Calin and which one is Declan?"

It isn't until Uncle Nathan comes home that things get a little crazy. It is him that riles them all up! The next 3 pictures remind me of watching the National Geographic channel: the takedown of a zebra by a bunch of hyenas (I used 'hyenas' as you can imagine the laughter that is coming out of all 5 mouths; and as for 'zebra', well, I didn't think Nathan would want to be referred to as a gazelle :o):

But Uncle Nathan isn't all about wrestling. It's amazing how quiet the house gets when there's videos of trucks driving through mud:

It's a good thing we have that bigger table now (that's a lot of meat to cut...5 plates worth!)

A close up of these 3 boys. If you know my sister, you will see that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree :o)

Ah. Great fun, I tell you!! I love these boys like they are my own! Yes, the day is more noisy; my house is more messy; but it is so worth it as I see my sister's kids with my own, something neither of us thought would happen. We are both "older" moms (compared to those in our age group, as people in our church tend to marry and have children at a younger age) and so I see it as such a blessing that we get to battle together through the challenges of parenting similar ages. And the best is when we share our joys together. Because there are plenty of those as well!!