The Swap

Ever since Ryker started school *gasp* 5 years ago I have participated in a swap with someone. A kid swap. I watch their child/children and they watch mine. For free.

Over the years it has taken on different forms. Sometimes it has been set up where I have the other child one day a week and the other mom takes my child on a different day that week. Sometimes it was just two hours once a week. Sometimes it was two kids but only every other week. It just depended on who I was swapping with and what my needs were at the time.

I initially did it so that I could go in to Ryker's class and help out (code for: find out what really goes on in the classroom since his response to every question about what he did at school was "I don't know"). It has sometimes also been a chance for me to get grocery shopping done or go to doctor's appointments as well.

This year I swap Kinley out with one of her little friends, Melia. They are 6 months apart in age(and 6 inches in height) and our families have been friends for over 10 years. They love playing together and I get the chance to volunteer in Ryker's 4th grade class and Cainan's 1st grade class almost every week. If you have kids in school and kids at home I highly recommend finding a swapping partner. After all, if you don't you'll miss out on experiences like this:

Today Melia was with us but I just couldn't put off my trip to Aldi, so we all loaded up and went together. Not the best grocery shopping experience I've ever had, but definitely not the worst. On the car ride on the way home I overheard this conversation:

Kinley: Grandma gave me these sandals.
Melia: Your grandma or my grandma?
Kinley: My grandma.
Melia: What shape is she?
Kinley: (without missing a beat) She's a rectangle with arms and legs and a hectagon for a head.
Melia: Oh.

And then they were on to the next topic. On the one hand, I was desperately hoping that I would get to hear what shape Melia's grandma was, but on the other hand I was a little scared they would start talking about what shape their mother's were, so overall I think it was a good place for the conversation to end.