To all our helpers

In our recent posts, we've neglected to mention all the wonderful help we've had for the boys at home.

At a moment's notice, my mom was able to get a week off work and was here the night Tom was moved to Riley. With the help of Becca, our nurse/babysitter/lifesaver they held down the fort for the first week. When mom had to head back home, our sister-in-law Katie took over as our "home base" person. The glue that held it all together our first 12 or so days in Indy is Don, Tim's dad. What a trooper! Pat, Tim's mom, has been down a couple times during Tom's stint in the hospital and Natalie, our 13-year-old neighbor and baby-slinging prodigy, has been amazing. Before school started, she stayed the night at our house several nights to make sure someone else got a chance to sleep. Now, Tim's Aunt Bonnie is at the helm and plans to stay until we "kick her out". As I understand it, she runs a very tight ship - which is exactly what we need!

In addition to all of these "home base" helpers, we've had a constant procession of other helpers at all hours of the day and night. These helpers include friends and neighbors from the area - and even from hours away. We can't thank you enough - all of you. We certainly couldn't divide our time between home and Indy without each and every one of you.

Since Tim and I are spending so much time away from the three boys at home, we've instituted a sort of guest book. When/if you come to help us out, please write a little note in our guest book. Be sure to include the date and time that you hung out with Henry, Joe and Sam. Tell us how well the boys ate or what fun things they did to entertain you. Our hope is that we won't feel quite as removed from their daily lives if we can share your experiences with them.

They say it takes a village to raise a child...well, I guess you could say we've recruited an entire city's worth of people to raise ours. And we couldn't be more grateful.

All our love and appreciation,
Tim, Kristin & the boys