How can we help?

When you have a new baby, friends and family really want to help, but it can be hard to know what to do. We've had some people make meals for us, and they have been delicious. But E Ben really enjoys cooking dinner (he sometimes calls it the best hour of his day), so a meal cooked by someone else doesn't really feel like much relief to him.

What we really need are some extra hands around our house. Our days are spent feeding the baby, holding the baby, playing with Jude, sleeping, and getting things done around the house. That last one tends to be harder and harder to accomplish with two kids, just because one of us is holding the baby and the other is tending to the toddler. When Jude is napping or asleep for the night, we have some time, but by then we're tired and usually just end up going to bed or watching something on TV.

I don't want to speak for all new parents, but for us the most helpful thing that someone can do is come over and hold the baby for a while or play with Jude in the evening. This gives us a chance to take a shower, go for a run, clean the kitchen, do a load of laundry, or work on the computer for a little bit. We've been lucky to have help many nights, between grandparents and friends. We've also hired a teenager who lives up the street to come over one night a week to babysit for Jude for a couple hours before bedtime (so far, we have stayed home while she plays with him; one of these days we will make it out for dinner with the baby).

So if you have some free time and feel like holding a baby or playing with a very fun toddler, please come on over! We'd love to see you - and your hands...