CH1. Life Goes On 1: Babysitting and It was Just Tiring

Hello, Tim!
A week after graduation and the days seem to move on just fine.
I still chat with my friends online and even met up with William just one day after graduation, but there is a heap of free time on our hands now, and it is up to us as to how to make use of them.
So far I'm doing... fine?
I don't know! I still spend too much time on my mindless cellphone games and it really makes me guilty, not being able to get rid of them easily. On the other hand, though, I also did various other activities like hiking and taking up a three-day babysitting challenge, and the latter made me really proud. Let's now look closer at the biggest activity of the week!

Negotiating and Governing Two Little Demons

"Anyway, I got time now, so... Why not?"
This is a very dangerous thought, as it turned out. Sophie and Aiden are not only known for their cuteness and energy; they are also known for their ignorance to requests from adults and their not-so-latent tendency to blithely and conveniently forget what they are supposed to pay mind to. It was sheer affection (borderline infatuation) for the two kids that made me overlook the caveats that implied the mental outbreaks that are prone to take place.
Okay, that was too much. I love the kids, no matter how much they made me wish that I have something to squeeze until crack.

Two of my favorite kids in the world.

Fortunately, the kids know that I won't resolve to loosen the rules I made for them no matter how many they try to wriggle out of it. That made our little "cooperation" a bit smoother than usual.
Taking care of kids should not be just hours of TV marathons and pizza and soda kind of happiness, especially when you are planning on taking care of them for any timeframe beyond a day.
You ask the kids what they want to do for the instant, and when it is a reasonable request, you respect the idea and try to fulfill it.
Sophie and Aiden wake up at different times of the day. It made my morning job easier since I could focus on one thing at a time, one kid at a time. I would spread Aiden's piece of toast with butter as I asked him to wash his face and brush his teeth. Then, I would prepare his medicaments to fight against his allergies and he would come to me and ask me for how long I would be looking after them. Dragging me to his bedroom, he would show me his jungle-green luggage he packed for himself for his family trip to Italy in the near future. "I folded all my clothes on my own and stuffed them inside the luggage," he proudly announced. Note that he is only nearly six.

The 'Ding' coming from the kitchen indicated that the toast is... toasted. With all the luggage dragging and the loud voices Aiden made, it was about time that Sophie woke up. I led Aiden back to the living room, served him his toasted toast and milk, and requested that he behave and eat up. It was a good thing that he likes toast with butter. That would keep him occupied. It would then become Sophie time. As the bigger sister by four years, it is quite a pity that she isn't more independent than Aiden. Therefore, I had to do all the things I did with Aiden all over again. Being able to manage one kid at a time only gave me the chance to give equal attention to both kids.
When both had finished their breakfast, Sophie would ask for some time on her iPad since she wanted to listen to some music. Some might call it preaching because she would ask you incessantly if you know about some random fact about some certain singers.
Several songs and awkward dancing later, and I asked them if they would like to hit the park and just have some fun. Both kids love the park and the playground, so rarely do they turn down offers like this.
I am familiar with a scenario like this:
-We go to the park
-We play tag and I have to act like a giant monster or ogre or anything of the sort
-The other kids are intrigued by our little games
- Sophie and Aiden extend their hands and ask if the others want to join
-We play tag and I have to act like a giant monster or ogre or anything of the sort
-The roles became reversed and now I am the monster which is chased after by three to six or even eight vicious kids
-One random kid suggested that we all play another game; most people agree
-Sophie switches to her constipated face and looked at me; she doesn't like the idea
-She suddenly decided that she wants me for her and Aiden alone
-Sophie doesn't know how to turn down an offer and the discussion on what to play goes on another ten minutes
-The other kids leave
-A while later, we leave
Familiar with this scenario because this is what ALWAYS happens. Normally at this point, the kids are already 80% satisfied with their playground experience. We would walk home, all three of us, hand in hand.
Then came lunchtime. On the first day, they were really reluctant to eat on the principle of being rebellious kids. I had none of that. It took me no more than fifteen minutes to finish my meal but stayed at my seat until the two of them finished theirs. By doing so, I hope to let them now it is basic manners to stay at the desk at all times during a meal. The kids were goofing around; Aiden would kick (softly) Sophie under the table, and Sophie would report it to me only after she had made her retaliation. Regardless of how many times I told her that kicking back is never the best choice, but this advice never fails to escape her. Mealtimes with the to is always the most infuriating. I took a solid hour for Aiden to finish his meal.
On the second day, though, I cooked them the easy canned tuna noodles, and it was the biggest triumph of all three days. They loved the noodles and was soon asking for more soup and more fish. This is also what I love about kids: They don't lie about their preferences.
In the afternoon came the real toil. The kids, after charged with the lunch-induced energy, would tug at my clothes (figuratively) and ask for my attention to play with them. Problem was, they have different ideas about "play". For Sophie, play means doing stretches and gymnastics, and *deep breath* body contortion. Sophie is Crazy about this kind of sports. She follows on YouTube body contortionists of roughly her age and managed to develop an incredibly flexible body. I don't know the development behind this, but it went from gymnastics to body contortion really quick. She would demand that I try to lie flat on my belly and try to touch my head with my feet. As a milder request, she would ask me to do a split, which I still can't.

It's really harder than it looks.

On the other hand, Aiden looks for more excitement. He wants to play hide and seek for the most the time. When Sophie is also in the mood, she would oblige, playing Aiden's ideal of game. When she isn't... comes my hard time. When Aiden throws a tantrum, he sulks around and doesn't talk. As the only person watching over the two, you won't want this to happen. The only plausible option was to persuade Sophie to join Aiden.
This is the first time I feel rejoice in being an eighteen-year-old; if I were one year younger, I don't think the adults would nod their heads on letting me be the only supervisor. These three days gave me a clearer picture of kids: It's utterly tiring and infuriating at times when you look after them, but when you find that you can still keep a cool voice and see two lovely angels even after they made you want to bang your head against the wall, you love kids and don't deny it.
I know that due to my own preferences, it is not going to be easy to have kids, but I certainly do hope for the day to come.