Moments of Grace

Last week was overwhelming. Between lots of things on the calendar, shuffling childcare plans, Brynna's 4 month shots, and getting some hard news, I found myself exhausted. It didn't help that Brynna was opting for the "every two hours feeding plan" some nights. I'd tuck Laurel into bed, snuggle up next to her to read her a story, and find that I had to motivate myself to get up afterwards and not just drift off to sleep.

It's in those moments of being tired and overwhelmed that I am most likely to snap at the girls. I find that packing them up and heading outside is exactly what we all need to keep from going a wee bit crazy.

And so on Friday, that's just what we did. We went for a walk and ended up at our local coffee shop. Laurel and I sat on a bench out front, sharing a gingersnap, sipping our drinks, and watching the cars go by. It was a lovely, damp, overcast day. The fall colors were muted, but beautiful. And I felt my soul fill back up with life. When we made our way to the park, Laurel and I climbed and laughed together, while Brynna slept peacefully in the stroller. It was a moment of grace for me.

This morning was another morning of exploring for us. We headed inside this time, to the Muttart Conservatory. As we were leaving, Laurel said, "Thank you, Mommy." I replied, "Thanks for what?" "Thanks for taking me there." Yep, that's enough to melt my heart.

Other things that are making me smile these days...

We have a tiny (invisible) elephant living with us. I'm always excited to hear what the elephant is doing, because you never know when the elephant (whose name, apparently, is Elephant) will show up next.

At night we've been telling Laurel stories about "Laurel Bear." She's now started calling Jon and me "Daddy Bear" and "Mommy Bear."

And, I have to be honest, one thing that is really making me happy right now is that Laurel seems to be having a breakthrough in potty training. I never knew I would get so excited about one person's ability to poop in the potty.

Oh, and Brynna slept through the night last night. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Brynna!