I'll be Watching the grandkids this evening.  When my son asked me, at a dinner with our extended family Sunday evening, if I could watch the younger one Monday morning and then both of them Tuesday afternoon and evening, my thoughts went straight to the loooonnngggg "To Do" lists I had already written out for those two days.  But that was just for a nanosecond.  Immediately I prioritized, knowing that being there for the grandkids was the most important thing in my life right now.  With a smile, I told them sure, I could do it.  Pretty Generous of me, huh!

I thought so, too, until a little later, when I overheard my son asking another family member, an 18-year-old cousin, if HE would be available for some child care over the next two days.  To my surprise, I immediately felt a flare of jealousy flash through me.  So much so, that I blurted out "So, you just replace me with a flip of the wrist!!!"  My son was as surprised as I was by my reaction.  Hmmm...  So am I so generous, or am I really, really possessive of those kids and defensive of my role as Grandmother (now that I've ... sort of ... gotten used to it...)?

The moment passed, we all laughed, and the cousin will be watching them for a couple of hours before I take over until Dad and Mom get home.  But it left me thinking still about how strong my feelings are for those tykes, and how important my part in their life has become to me.