Some Good Moments

When it comes to parenting, Brother Eyre said, "Live from good moment to good moment and forget the stuff in between." Here are some good moments:

I had a momentary lapse of insanity the other day at Target. Macy fell in love with this Sleeping Beauty umbrella (her favorite Disney Princess). She asked if she could have it, and I said okay!?! Then, we were walking thought the clothes section when she stopped in her tracks, dropped the umbrella, and ran to a Barbie nightgown. She said, "Oh mom, I want to wear this dress!" I tried to explain that it was a nightgown and not a dress, but she said, "Oh no. This is a beautibul dress." (That is how she says "beautiful".) It was so dramatic that another customer at the store audibly laughed at her. So, I said she could have that as well. I don't know what came over me. I generally have the hardest time spending money, and Macy walked out of the store with a new nightgown and umbrella. I felt so guilty that I had to buy Austin some new Superhero winter pajamas.

Macy takes this umbrella with her everywhere. She asks me if it's raining about 20 times a day. She had it with her yesterday at best-friend Tanner's house. They insisted on walking to our house (Tanner's mom drove right next to them in the car). Tanner had his horse blanket (he's crazy about horses), and Macy had her umbrella. They played together for about six hours yesterday. Macy is very much into pretend play - so they played "family" all day long. They called each other "honey" and packed their backpacks full of treasures. They are hilarious together!

Today was Macy's first day of preschool and dance lessons. I've never seen anybody so excited for school. It nearly broke her heart that Austin started 2 weeks ago and she has had to wait until today. She ripped a hole in her backpack already because she puts so much stuff in it.


We went up to Bear Lake with Greg's family for Labor Day. When it was time to leave the beach, Greg and I started cleaning up the sand toys, and Macy found a little, toy watering can. The entire time we cleaned up the beach (tables, chairs, boats, etc.), Macy pretended like she was planting and watering her flowers. She was so carefree and sweet - talking to herself about her flower garden. During the week, she snuggled up to people on the couch, including Sharon - Greg's handicap sister. Sharon loved it, and followed Macy around the rest of the weekend saying, "Macy...Macy...Macy" and clicking her tongue for Macy like you would call a dog. Macy didn't think twice about it - she just loves and accepts Sharon for who she is. As I watched her on the beach, I thought to myself, "I hope she never loses these wonderful qualities." She is so carefree, happy, accepting, and shows unconditional love to everyone she meets. What an amazing little girl!

I love this picture of Austin - mostly because beneath the helmet - he is actually smiling! It is so hard to capture his true smile on camera. I had a great moment with Austin this past week. On Monday, when we were getting ready to leave Bear Lake, we went back to the cabin while Greg stayed to help clean up the boats, wave runners, etc. All the other families had left. After we got packed, I went up to the play room to see if it had been cleaned up - it hadn't. It was an absolute disaster. Austin was playing Nintendo with his cousin, Wyatt. I asked Austin if he would please help me clean up the playroom. Without hesitating, he and Wyatt stopped their game and both helped me clean up. He didn't complain, and I didn't have to keep reminding him. He very easily could have said, "But I didn't make this mess." Although he contributed, he would have been right - there was no way he made that entire mess. I was so proud of him for helping. It's moments like this that I think "Whatever we are trying to teach him - some of it really is sinking in!" At first, I was quite irritated that everybody had left without helping. But, afterward, I was so grateful (that sounds strange, doesn't it). I was grateful because I was able to have this wonderful moment with Austin. So...I am going to savor this good moment and try to dwell on it until the next one comes along. He's such a great kid!