A Good Day

Today was full of good moments. Moments that brought joy and reminded me over and over that this is what being a mom is all about. It was a good lesson about enjoying the mundane and regular life. It was also a much needed reprieve from the many difficult two year old moments the past few days have been filled with.

I needed to do meal planning and a shopping list this morning and Emily sat happily next to me at the the table eating the last of her breakfast and drawing until I was finished.

I was starting to clean up the kitchen after breakfast when Emily ran in asking me to wrap her up with a blanket and read the boat book to her on the couch. I am constantly amazed at her verbal and signing vocabulary and just how specific her requests are. It is so fun that the window into of her mind is getting bigger.

We postponed kitchen cleaning for a little while and read the boat book on the couch. When we finished that one she asked for more. She chose The Little Engine that Could and we read that one lying on our backs with her baby in between us.  She noticed all sorts of details we’ve missed in the hundreds of previous readings. She said “can can can” when the Little Blue Engine worked her way up the big hill.  We read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom next and Emily recited a good portion of the book right along with me.  It was a perfect twenty minutes.

While grocery shopping Emily was very excited about buying strawberries. She helped to load our groceries onto the conveyer belt and insisted on helping me get the bags in the back of the cart because they were “heavy”. She kept her eyes on the strawberries the entire time and ate a few as soon as we got home while we were putting the groceries away.  While I was cutting them up for her to eat she started doing karate chops with alternating hands and saying “cut cut” with each swish of her arms; a true Emily original. There were no tears in this process of getting the strawberries from the store to the kitchen table. It was an unusally peaceful experience.

I had to wake up Emily from her nap and she was cheery and ready to go.  She was a great sport all afternoon and even kind of played by herself while I made dinner. There was not a “mommy” every two seconds for 30 minutes and begging with teary eyes to lift her up to see.  She was happy during the entire dinner hour.

We spent the evening in the garden. The sun was no longer beating down in the back and the wind was cooling things off a bit. Gardening in those conditions always is perfect for feeding my soul. Watching Emily out there with me just swelled the joy right out of me. She set about digging holes. She carefully selected rocks and clumps of dirt and purposefully put them under a patch of weeds. She joined me in weeding and pulled a few of her own and then threw each of mine in the bucket.  She sat down and covered her legs with dirt while saying “smash, smash”. She said “mommy hands” and tried on my gloves while trying to weed just like me. She noticed the water dripping from the faucet and suggested that we stop it. She said “Emily stop” and got up and tried to take care of it herself. She helped me clean up the shovels, gloves, and knee pad with enthusiasm.

When we came inside she suggested she take a bath. Three days ago was the last time we attempted a much needed bath and after the tub was filled she started crying and saying “towel, towel” and never made it into the tub. I was skeptical how long her excitement to use “soap” and play with her “duck” would last (expressed “bath! soap! duck!” with smiles inbetween). She stuck it out and lathered herself up. When it came to the part where we wash the soap out of her hair I was sure the tortured cries would start. I gave her the usual options – lay down or look up high. She just laid right down. No hesitation. No fight. Holy cow! She even laughed and suggested I pour water on her tummy and toes. Then she directed whether I pour water on her duck or on Emily. She says her name pretty perfectly now and the adorableness hasn’t warn off.

Bedtime routine went perfectly textbook. It was a day full of great moments. No bad moments. A rarity with a toddler, and I’m bursting with gratitude for the gem of a great day. And for my sweet girl who is such a vital part to this Jackson family.