Auntie Krissy Comes to Share Her Love
It was just over three years ago that Auntie Krissy booked a last minute flight to come meet baby Caleb and provide our family support during the time that Caleb was in the NICU. We were finding it difficult to live at the hospital while still tending to our older boys and their activities, not to mention trying to keep a house in order. Auntie Krissy comes to the rescue and turns out to be Caleb’s good luck charm. The day she arrived is the day they gave us clearance to take Caleb home.
I’ll never forget the tremendous amount of help she provided during her stay here. She cooked meals, cleaned the house, drove older kids around, played with the older kids, held a crying baby, attended breastfeeding consultations with me, bought treats for us………you name it, she did it.
She snapped this photo of Dan and Caleb as we brought Caleb home and told us we looked like celebrities, even though we felt anything but celebrity status.
Here is one of the most precious photos of them together.
Fast forward three years and Auntie Krissy comes to visit again to help out the Kasner Klan and spend some quality time with Caleb during a somewhat difficult time.
Her interactions with Caleb (and the other kids) demonstrate that she truly is a natural educator. She has a way of “playing” while also teaching a lesson. For example, she helped create this calendar to assist Caleb in better understanding what his days looks like (he’s a planner like his mommy). This also helps him with transitions when he has multiple activities in one day. Those teachers always have tricks up their sleeves!
One of Auntie Krissy’s passions is reading and helping kids find the right books for their learning style so we took her to Wild Rumpus for storytime and book browsing. Here they are snuggled up reading a picture book together, so special.
Auntie Krissy was also able to create a game in which Caleb and Duncan both used the alphabet puzzle together. This puzzle has been Caleb’s most treasured toy and somehow has the ability to sense when Duncan is within 2 feet of this puzzle and beelines after him to ensure he doesn’t lie a finger on it. But when I looked over, I was witnessing something close to a miracle. Caleb said “your turn Duncan” and allowed him to touch “R”, the last letter to complete the alphabet puzzle.
We are so thankful for the time Auntie Krissy spent with our family last week. She was so helpful by driving boys to hockey, watching the littles so Dan and I could go to yoga, cooking, cleaning and most importantly carving time out to spend with Caleb. It’s so touching to watch her build a relationship with our children and I think they enjoyed the creativity of her play vs the practical, analytical play that they typically receives from me. My only wish is that after witnessing the craziness of our household of 6, she comes back again for more sometime in the future.
Below are some pics of Caleb opening a letter from his cousin, Vernie and giving farewell kisses to Auntie Krissy. We love you!
