This weekend my sister and her husband dropped Lala off our at our house for a 24 hour visit so they could go to a wedding. Lala is 18 months old now and while she’s smaller then most kiddos her age, she’s pretty much spot on for all her developmental milestones. Fantastic for her, but it meant I had a full on toddler living at my house again for the weekend.

News flash- toddlers are a ton of work.

Don’t get me wrong- Lala is theeasiestkid ever. She didn’t cry or fuss, she went down for bed without a single peep and ate everything we put in front of her.  She was a dream child in every possible way.

But she is a toddler.

I forgot how many times in a day toddlers try to kill themselves. Lala walked into walls, she fell over (on her forehead) when trying to stand up and she had no qualms pulling the kitties tails (my kitties have nails, y’all) any chance she could get.  I thought my house was pretty much still baby proof- but I was wrong. And Lala found everything she shouldn’t have within her first hour here, which made the subsequent 23 hours a bit easier on my nerves.

Lala is a champion sleeper- I could only dream about my kids sleeping that good when they were smaller. Her sleep schedule includes two naps a day- a morning nap (9:30 ish) and  an afternoon nap (around 3ish).  All totally normal and expected- but I completely wiped out life structured around naps from my brain.  On a normal Saturday, the kids and I are usually out of the house between 9 – 10, going to the park or the library, then out to lunch and then grocery shopping. We get home around 2 and just keep going.  This Saturday with Lala needing a nap (even more so then usual because her little hiney was up at 6:15 along with my kids b/c I’m sure she didn’t want to miss a thing), we couldn’t go anywhere.  So we didn’t- which in one way was wonderful, but it also meant by 2:30 when we had to leave, the kids were climbing the walls.

I also realized how much of the good from toddlerhood I wiped out of my mind. The way a baby’s head fits in the crook of your elbow. The fun of trying to teach a kid a new word and hearing them get it.  Watching the intense concentration on a toddler’s face when they try to get a very small piece of food on their fork and into their mouth.  Their drunken stagger, fascinated by everything they see.

All in all, it was an awesome 24 hours and I’m so glad Red and TBO trusted us enough with Lala to keep here. She’s an absolute joy- and also the best birth control a girl could ask for.