braylen

graduation Thursday

May 16, 2013 | 10 Comments

Today was a busy day! My day started off at school with kindergarten graduation. The kiddo’s did an amazing job sharing what they’ve learned about the 7 Habits (we’re a Leader In Me school and trying our best to implement the program into every facet of the school). I’m going to miss this group as they move on to first grade, we’ve had a fun year. I did pick up a cute new dress, that I’d love to have in every pattern they make. You can find the dress here and the shoes here.

After our graduation was over, I headed to BK’s school to see her end of the year program. She and I should probably have a real talk about how to stand on stage and not pull up her dress the whole time. That comes with age, right? Right?

At least she gave everyone a good laugh. Three is such a fun and unpredictable age, and when I say that I mean, she’ll always be having fun, we just don’t always know how she’ll be doing it. I was just incredibly thankful that I laid a pair of shorts out for her to wear under the dress.

This year has flown by, but I’m positive we made a great choice by enrolling her for two days a week. She’s had a great time making new friends and really fallen in love with her teachers. She actually keeps telling us that this isn’t her last day. We have really seen her blossom over the past year and I adore that spunky little personality that always manages to find herself front and center.

Here’s a little look at how much she’s grown.

We had Cheesecake Factory for lunch, it’s my favorite and I ordered my go-to dish, White Bean Chicken Chili. I have a half-piece of White Chocolate Macadamia Nut and Caramel Cheesecake waiting in my fridge, I didn’t want to indulge until after I went shopping for a new swim suit. It didn’t help, by the way.

I also bought my Mother’s Day gifts. Well, I asked for a little retail therapy for Mother’s Day, so I actually spent that money on a few things. Like Chaco’s for our upcoming Disney trip and a new swim suit. I have plenty of one-piece choices from over the years and I’m basically my pre-pregnancy size. The problem is, I need something that I can chase a toddler in and not worry about making adjustments or giving anyone more than they bargained for, I think this sea foam crochet one-piece is the perfect option. Also, it is super flattering, I couldn’t pass it up.

x200

I’ve had the best day with my sweet family, now I’m off to eat that cheesecake.

Filed Under: braylen, day in the life, Growing with Braylen, what I wore

tomorrow you are three, BK

April 12, 2013 | 18 Comments

Braylen Kate,

Tomorrow you will hold up three of the most adorable fingers and proclaim that you are indeed, three years old. You’ve practiced holding up those three fingers for weeks and tomorrow is the day. When I tucked you in last night, I wiped away tears and I stayed around even after you fell asleep. I watched you sleep for a few minutes and for a moment I couldn’t convince myself that you would be three soon. I can still see so much of that sweet newborn in you while you sleep, when everything is quiet.

1,095 days ago you came into this world, tiny and perfect, and even though it’s only been three years, it’s hard to remember a time when you weren’t with us. My heart is full of love for you and I can’t imagine it any other way. Marking the yearly milestone with a birthday is bittersweet. I’m not sad because I absolutely adore you in this stage (just as I have every one before), but I am reminded of just how fast this precious time passes.

You bring joy to so many people. Your laugh is infectious, your smile contagious, and your personality is larger than life. I like to take credit for some of your personality traits and give your daddy credit for the others. But the truth is, neither of us can match your personality. You are outgoing and entertaining, you never meet a stranger, and I’m not sure you even know the meaning of shy. You actually sang two or three entire songs while we were shopping last Friday night, loud and proud. Your confidence is unmatched and I’d give just about anything to ensure you go through life with this same confident attitude.

Your second year was full of big changes and firsts. We moved into a new house, in a new town. You started Mother’s Day Out for a few hours each week. We traveled to the beach and the aquarium. You kicked the diaper habit and gave your paci to Santa. You learned to jump with both feet off the ground (that’s probably the one you’re most proud of). You had your first ear infection, found a love for Mexican food, Japanese hibachi and baking cookies with me in the kitchen.

Your hair curls up in tight ringlets and your eyes are big and blue. You don’t go anywhere without a bow and you fight “penny-tails” every time I try to put your hair up. You talk and talk and talk, and when we think you are finished, you tell us something else.

Braylen Kate, you are so smart. You have conversations with me and put puzzles together, you can count and say your ABC’s and pick out letters when you see them. You remember everything, down to the smallest details. We read books together and you remember the story sequence and details. You read them back to me in your own words and you blow me away with how much you remember from being read a book just one time. You love patterns and shapes and figuring things out, counting and sorting. Your imagination knows no boundaries.

A million times, I’ve wondered how we got so lucky to be your parents. God is entrusting us with something great, and we don’t take that for granted. I know you’re going to do big things, little girl.

There is a video
I found from back when I was three
You set up a paint set in the kitchen
And you’re talking to me
It’s the age of princesses and pirate ships
And the seven dwarfs
Daddy’s smart
And you’re the prettiest lady in the whole wide world

I don’t know why all the trees change in the fall
I know you’re not scared of anything at all
Don’t know if Snow White’s house is near or far away
But I know I had the best day
With you today

Taylor Swift, The Best Day

Filed Under: braylen, from-my-heart, Growing with Braylen

wait, how old are you?

March 29, 2013 | 10 Comments

It’s Spring Break for me and I’ve been home with BK all week. I didn’t make any big plans, just a low-key week at home with my girl. She’s been asking to go see a movie for a few weeks, so on Wednesday we went to see The Croods. By the way, it was a great toddler movie, she was engaged the whole time and even sat in my lap for most of the movie. Rare for Miss Independent, but I’ll take it anytime.

On the edge of 3, she is such a talker, she asks questions about things and when there isn’t anyone to talk to, she just talks to herself. My mom swears I was just like her when I was her age, which makes sense, I still love to talk. But we’re at that stage now where she listens to conversations and chimes in to what we are saying, even when we aren’t having a conversation with her. It’s eye-opening, suddenly you go from thinking she might be listening to okay, she’s listening, game on.

It’s funny and cute until you go to the movies and feel like you’ve been transplanted into an episode of Kids Say The Darndest Things.

Me: Hi! I need to get two tickets to the The Croods at 12:30

Rave Employee: Okay, and how old is she?

Me: She’s 2.

Braylen: Uh, moooom, I’m not 2, I am 3 years old.

Me: (shaking my head) She’s a little excited about her birthday, it’s next month, she’ll be 3 on her birthday.

Braylen: I’m ’bout to be 3 an’ a half, that’s why I am a big girl now.

Rave Employee: Okay… so here are your tickets. 2 and under get in free.

Clearly, it looked like I was trying to get a free pass for my 3 year old by lying about her age. I know I turned 7 shades of red and I almost wanted to just pay for the ticket anyway, but she really is 2. I’m a rule follower, like a put my cart back in the designated location every time I go to the store, rule follower. This was just lovely. I wanted to prove that she was 2 but she doesn’t carry a license and I don’t keep her birth certificate in my back pocket. I just went on and bought my popcorn and then I called Allen. And? He laughed, because it is pretty funny if it didn’t happen to you.

So we went on with our movie-date and ate tons of popcorn, and talked about how old she really is.

And when I asked her why she said she was 3? She replied, well, just ’cause sometimes I like to be 3 or 5 or somethin’.

Filed Under: braylen

grace and discipline: finding the middle ground

March 28, 2013 | 8 Comments

Last week, I wrote a post about giving grace to Braylen. I responded to a few emails that came through regarding grace and discipline and when the line should be drawn. I thought it might just be more simple to write a follow-up post.

I don’t want you to think that I hang around all day to clean up messes and offer kind words and that’s alrights. I believe 100% that there is a time for grace and there is a time for discipline. Had she intentionally racked her Cheerios off on the floor, we would have been dealing with a much different problem. My methods aren’t fool-proof, they are entirely based on what works for our family and what I feel, in my heart, is the best way to parent. Are they effective? Yes, right now they are. Ask me in 20 years and I’ll let you know the long term outcome.

You should probably know that I really like to control things, I try my hardest to be more go with the flow, but I can’t always suppress those controlling tendencies of mine. What I had to learn early on was that people typically don’t disappoint, my expectations are just off. When you like to control situations, you expect people to act a certain way and sometimes calculate what you think their next step should be. Once I tuned into reality, I quickly realized that isn’t a reasonable way of thinking. And by reality, I mean, once I became a mother.

Here I was, with this child who belonged to me and yet I controlled very few things. She is her own person, with her own little personality. She once sang a mashup of Jesus Loves Me and Twinkle, Twinkle in front of our entire church congregation. I sat helplessly near the back, watching as it unfolded. We had discussed the song, she had practiced singing while Allen played the guitar, but when the time came? She took her creative liberties with her song choice.

There’s more to it than just realizing I can’t control everything, there is also releasing the expectation of perfection. We all make mistakes, from little clumsy mistakes to mistakes caused by not paying careful attention. I’m clumsy and I can’t tell you how many times I spilled coffee in my car or dropped things while dusting. Mistakes are human and no matter how old we get, we aren’t immune to simple accidents. I can’t hold BK to a standard of perfection that I can’t achieve myself.

I want her to know that mistakes happen and we fix them and we move on. I want her to be okay when things don’t go just right and I don’t want her to lose her cool or get upset over little things. What does that mean for me? It means I have to be okay when things don’t go my way, when things don’t happen quite as planned. I have to fix my mistakes and move on instead of dwelling on them.

But discipline? It’s required. I like to think that it’s much easier to fix behavior problems now, than it will be when she’s 10. I don’t think there is necessarily a line drawn and things on one side need to be handled with sternness and things on the other side need to be handled with grace. Instead, it’s more about intent. I watch her to gain knowledge of what she’s capable of, what she knows not to do, and I react accordingly.

Grace and discipline are hard things to find a balance between. But, honestly? She always gets grace even if it has to come with discipline. We don’t hold grudges, we believe in second chances and honest mistakes. It isn’t fool proof and I’m absolutely certain I’ll learn something new about this each day that I parent her.

What about you, what wisdom do you have regarding discipline and grace?

Filed Under: braylen, grace

a monday evening brain dump

February 25, 2013 | 7 Comments

Hands down, my favorite kind of post. I think it gives you a real glimpse of how my mind works. I could sit here all day and babble on and on about random things as they pop into my mind. I’ll spare you, of course, but here’s a glimpse of how I go from one extreme to the other with my thought process:

I love, love, love that my husband can build anything I see on Pinterest. I stay far away from power tools, but if I show him just what I want, he’s really good at replicating. I think he made this nearly a year ago, but I finally added vinyl lettering and it’s one of my favorite things he’s ever made. Now, I might change my mind when he finally completes her Dr. Seuss-inspired bookshelf.

I have been hooked on Greek yogurt for sometime now. I have a pretty constant rotation of Chobani Pear, Chobani Apple Cinnamon, and Oikos Toasted Coconut Vanilla. I eat it nearly every morning for breakfast, I’m such a creature of habit. Apparently, I’ve passed that on to BK, she wants either Vanilla Greek yogurt or pancakes each morning.

Speaking of eating habits, I’ve finally managed to fall into some sort of healthy living/healthy eating routine. Since school started back I’ve lost nearly 20 pounds. I’ve still got a good 10 to go, but it sure feels nice to be so much closer to my goal. I’m going to kick the workouts up a notch and stop skipping Insanity, I just might be beach ready in time for summer.

The rate at which BK is growing is crazy, I can’t even write about it and be sentimental, it just blows my mind and I haven’t been able to wrap my head around the changes. She has conversations with us, tells us how she feels about different things, and sometimes I have to ask Allen, “Is she 2 or 12?” Regardless, she is still SO full of personality, I don’t know who her larger-than-life-never-met-a-stranger-personality comes from, but I sure love to see it shine.

Blissdom is a little less than one month away. My plane ticket is booked, I’m working with an awesome sponsor (more to come, soon), my roomie is just as ready as I am and I have a hotel room waiting in Dallas. I can’t tell you how excited I am to get back to Blissdom this year. Are you going? We need to meet-up!!

Speaking of Blissdom, look what was at the top of my “Last 12 Months” folder in iPhoto when I went to upload pictures for this post. It doesn’t seem like it has been a year, and it makes me miss these sweet ladies (and the rest of our Blissdom group, too).

I laughed when I came across the fabric at Hobby Lobby last week. Chevron print on burlap? I thought for a moment, Pinterest must have started its on fabric line. Seriously, it’s really cute and you know I love Pinterest, but it gave me a good laugh.
I deleted social media from my phone, I’ve done this before and I always end up putting it back on there. I just think it’s silly that I spend free moments checking Facebook and Twitter when I have people who need me a lot more right in front of me. AND, let’s be real, the constant flow of information can be just a little overwhelming, at times. I need to clear my mind a bit. I’ll be using them when I actually have time to sit down at the computer from now on.

I didn’t delete Instagram, it’s sort of my favorite. Are you on Instagram? Are we following each other? I’m @jenniferggreen on IG.

I have a few fun giveaways on the blog right now (some will be ending soon), you can enter through any of the links below:
- Clorox and BlogHer are giving a $1,000 Visa gift card to a lucky commenter here.
- St. Joseph’s and BlogHer are giving away their product for you and two friends here. This post came when my feeds were down, you have a good chance of winning because of the low entries, just FYI.
- Tide Pods and BlogHer are giving away a $100 Visa gift card to a lucky commenter here.

Filed Under: brain dump, braylen, DIY

what she’s teaching me

February 21, 2013 | 1 Comment

There are times that I get so wrapped up in what I think I should be teaching Braylen, that I miss the mark completely. Those times when I’m blinded by the fact that I’m reminding her to say please or thank-you for what seems like the ten-thousandth time, I lose sight of what I’m even requesting of her, I’m too focused on just getting her to do the right thing. Too focused on getting her to do what I ask, to follow this set of rules, to do these specific things. When my focus shifts, I forget the most important thing, she’s here to teach me too.

And you think, she’s 2, how much can she really be teaching you? Sure, she doesn’t know her states and capitals, she can’t school me on fiscal policy and she can’t tell me whether or not the Bachelor gave the correct girl the final rose. Oh, but she has something so much better to give, something much sweeter to teach me. You see, she is just two, and that means she sees things through a whole different set of eyes. A set of eyes much different than the set I generally use, the ones that sometimes overshadow joy with worry, that sometimes focus on the bad rather than the good in people.

Just as I’m feeling defeated by a long day at work, as I let my mind wander and drift, I catch her out of the corner of my eye. The familiar motion of her little hands waving towards her. I look her way, she has my attention as she lays at the top of the hill in the backyard and rolls down, squealing with laughter. At two, she has something that I’d like to have. She has the ability to turn ordinary moments into extraordinary moments, overflowing with joy. I smile at her when she reaches the bottom, a big smile, from the truest place in my heart.

She doesn’t need the world, she doesn’t need approval, she doesn’t worry about a thing. She runs back to the top with a clover stuck in the tight ringlets that frame her neck, I wish that she would be this carefree, always. These moments give me wisdom and clarity, they teach me that she only needs me to love her and play with her, she doesn’t need worry or for my attention to be fixated on things beyond my control.

She’s been teaching me all along. From the moment I laid eyes on her, in a brightly-lit operating room. The day I first understood a mothers love. A love quick and without hesitation, a feeling that this bond had been shared for an eternity, yet it was merely seconds old. Each day since has been a lesson in love and thankfulness, a test of patience. I’ve grown in faith and learned that I can’t control everything, not even for my own little one. She teaches me about grace each time she lays her head on my shoulder and falls asleep, especially after a long day, full of toddler antics. As she lays there, her chest rising and falling with each deep breath, her eyelashes resting softly on her cheeks, I forget it all. All of the worry, each and every missed nap, everything else that is clouding my mind and interfering with our time.

If I’ll just slow down, if I’ll just listen better, if I’ll just let her, she’ll teach me things I can’t learn anywhere else, things I’ll treasure for my whole life.

Filed Under: braylen, from-my-heart

“doh”n’t you wanna be mine, valentine?

February 14, 2013 | Leave a Comment

It’s going to be a low-key Valentine’s day for us. I usually scheme up some big-ticket item I absolutely need to coincide with the holiday of love, but this year I didn’t even throw any major hints out there. Not even dinner reservations. I wonder if this means I’m getting old? I always thought it was weird when couples didn’t exchange gifts, now I’m one of the weird ones. Kidding, of course. I am just craving some at-home family time with my two loves, and I am looking forward to this evening.

I want to share the fun Valentines I made for Braylen to take to her class. I also tweaked the wording a little and made some for my class, as well. She was so excited about giving her friends play-doh. She said, “Mama, they will looovvve this! They will make them some shapes.”

I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that I love this stuff. Seriously, I can pass on some things but Valentines for her friends at school? Not a chance. My excitement is through the roof. I’ve been looking forward to making cutesy-holiday themed things for B’s classmates since I signed her up for MDO this past summer. The fun has just begun!

If you’re wondering, I do realize how big of a nerd that makes me.

These were super easy to create. Just print the tag on an adhesive label, add play-doh and cookie cutters to a clear bag and seal with the label. I had to put together 32 of these and it took around 20 minutes. Not bad at all. The animal-shaped cutters came in a Play-Doh animal pack that I picked up at Wal-Mart.

Here are the actual images you can use to make the same Valentine’s. If you don’t have Photoshop, you can use a simple (free) site like iPiccy and add the text to the bottom. I printed mine on Avery square labels (22816).

I hope you all have a very Happy Valentine’s Day!!

Filed Under: braylen, DIY, parties, toddler fun, Valentine's Favors Tagged With: free printable, play doh valentine's, play-doh valentine, printable

sleep tips & soothing relief from st. joseph’s {giveaway}

February 6, 2013 | 10 Comments

Some days it seems like a blur and others it seems like an eternity has passed since Braylen was born. I may have forgotten some of the details in between (which is why I’m thankful to have this blog), I may have forgotten some of the sleepless nights, but I may never forget the overwhelming feeling that being a new mom brings. Don’t get me wrong, I was overjoyed, over the moon happy when I first laid eyes on her in that hospital room. I was in love, in a love like I had never felt before.

However, I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that I also felt clueless when it came to raising a child. How in the world could I protect this tiny little girl from everything and everyone? How would I know all the right things to do? I don’t think any parenting class in the world can prepare for you for the mix of emotions that floods you when you step outside that hospital door for the first time, with your first child.

Thankfully, those feelings subsided as I realized that a mothers instinct kicks in faster than anything else I’ve ever experienced. Soon, I was a pro (or so it seemed to me), I could change the diaper of a sleeping baby without even waking her up. I could make a bottle in the wee hours of the morning while soothing a hungry infant. I learned her cries and figured out just what she needed.

Those first few days and even weeks were tough, but they were some of the sweetest days of my life. Those first few weeks were important to me. I knew I wanted her to be on a schedule, I had read books about sleep training before she was born. Thankfully, the key to getting Braylen to sleep through the night was simple; she wanted to be swaddled. Allen and I both learned to swaddle like a pro, we would wrap her up snugly and she would sleep for hours. It was my saving grace. And soon she big enough for swaddle blankets and zip-up swaddles. Then on to sleep sacks and eventually transitioning completely away from anything that resembled a swaddle. From that day on, every friend that becomes a new mom gets a swaddling blanket and a note from me that shares our sleeping success story.

As she grew and the new mom fears subsided I also learned tips and tricks that helped to calm her when she was upset. One common problem in infants is gas, when their little tummies are upset no amount of swaddling or rocking can calm them like gas drops. I want to introduce St. Joseph Infants’ Gas Relief drops to you. They work quickly to break down gas bubbles that cause discomfort and when your infant is in pain, you want something that works as quickly as possible. Rest assured, these drops are safe to use at every feeding, and are free of any dyes, alcohol or saccharin. That’s refreshing for any new mom.

You can follow this link to print a $3.00 coupon.

Tell me, What is your #1 Tip for a new mom? Answer this question in the comment section below for a chance to win 3 packages of St. Joseph Infants’ Gas Relief Drops. That’s one for you and two to share with friends!

Sweepstakes Rules
No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 2/6-2/28.

Be sure to visit the sponsor’s brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

Filed Under: braylen, giveaway, review

almost 3? really? already?

February 5, 2013 | 4 Comments

I can’t believe BK will be 3 years old in about two months. I’m slightly in denial, but not so much that I haven’t already started planning for her 3rd birthday bash. She is so funny and full of personality. I can hardly believe her quick wit and ability to actually hold a conversation, these days. She can tell me about her day and her friends at school, she’s good at reasoning things out, and she is the life of the party anywhere we go. Always singing and entertaining, showing off her “jenn-nastics” and stealing the hearts of anyone who’ll let her. Here’s a quick update on our spunky little girl:

She gave up her beloved ahh-wah (her paci), she’s called it that for as long as I can remember now. One day as it was approaching nap time, we couldn’t find the paci anywhere. She was starting to melt down and on a whim I suggested she “call her paci.” If you’ve ever had a sleepy baby without a lost paci, this doesn’t sound as crazy to you. Instead of “where are you?,” she said “ahh-wah?” She never called it anything different. Even when she started talking really well, if she would misplace her paci, she would say, “Ahh-wah, where are you?” We left it for Santa and he took it with him in exchange for some cool “big girl” presents. I think we started talking about Santa taking her paci back in October. She seemed to be fine without it, overall. No major meltdowns, no crying and begging, but her naps have changed from structured and scheduled to sporadic and at times, non-existent. I know it will take time for her to figure out how to self-soothe. She’s sang herself to sleep, talked herself to sleep, slept with her lovey and played with her hair, as a means of getting herself to sleep. She doesn’t have a consistent method, just yet. I think her naps will improve when this happens. As far as bedtime? No change, she didn’t miss a beat, except a few nights of asking for it before falling asleep. For me, it was a little sad to see the paci go. Of course, I know it was time, but it was the last baby thing we had left. We rounded up every single paci the week after Christmas, we had amassed quite the collection.

Braylen requested we bake cookies on Saturday morning and I’ve been wanting to try my hand at iced sugar cookies. We had the best time in the kitchen, cooking up sweet treats and spending time together. Standing in our kitchen, covered in flour, still in our pajamas, I couldn’t help but feel so blessed by this life I have. I have some amazing people to share it with and I am thankful each and every day.

We spent the majority of the morning baking and icing, I have the best days with this girl.

Here’s a look at how our cookies turned out.

She had her visit to the dentist last week. They counted her teeth and checked them out, to make sure they were nice and healthy. When the hygenists proclaimed that she had 20 teeth, I wasn’t at all surprised. I feel like she’s been teething (on and off) for years. Ask that weary, sleep-deprieved version of myself in the midst of teething, and she would tell you it seems like there should be at least three times as many. She loves her dentist and his staff, they were so good with her. She gave him a big hug at the end and has told everyone about her dentist. While driving home she said, “I’m glad Dr. Mike didn’t pull my teeth out.” We laughed so hard, I have no idea where that came from, but she didn’t seem too concerned during the appointment.

As her hair gets longer, it gets curlier. It’s pretty far down her back when it’s wet, but as it dries it curls in little ringlets. I could hardly stand the cuteness of her “penny tails,” as she calls them.

I say this during every stage, but this age is so much fun, I hope I keep saying that forever.

Filed Under: braylen, toddler fun

this day

January 29, 2013 | 9 Comments

Braylen accompanied me on my weekly grocery trip last Sunday. This particular day she was in an extremely loving mood. Before we left the house she sat in my lap at the desk while I wrote out the grocery list, her arms wrapped around mine, her eyes were fixed on my every move. Don’t forget to add my apples, mama. And my ‘nola bars, too. I planned to leave her home with Allen while I shopped, that’s what she generally prefers, but not this time. She grabbed her shoes and headed to the door when I did, I had a sweet little shadow for the day.

As we were walking through the store, she kept asking me for jus’ one more kiss. I leaned down to her and whispered in her ear, You know, one day you’re going to be embarrassed when mommy kisses you in the grocery store. She looked up at me with a smile, the kind that makes her nose scrunch up and her eyes disappear. I laughed, not quite sure that she understood, but when I reached to put something in the cart she said, This day I give you all my kisses and hugs.

I could feel it immediately, that familiar sting of tears. In that moment, I felt just how blessed I was to be her mother, to be in the middle of this sweet moment. People bagged produce and shuffled carts around me, I was blissfully unaware of everything else. Any other day, I would have let my mind wander to the day I drop her off at school, and she decides she’s too big for embarrassing hugs from her mother. Not this day.

This day. The weight that those two simple words carry can be profound. I am guilty of letting my mind wander and bring back worry and confusion. I am guilty of second-guessing myself and over-thinking parenting decisions. I am guilty of letting the worry of tomorrow project onto the joy of today. I’m quick to let the fear of time passing too quickly overshadow this day.

I can’t be sure about tomorrow. I can’t predict what the future might hold. I can be sure about today, this day. I can take this moment and live it for everything it’s worth. I can be deliberate and intentional in this day. Life is full of uncertainties that bring tremendous worry to any person who gives them a second thought. Those uncertainties are amplified when we’re given another life to look after, when we’re entrusted with a gift so great.

I want to remember those simple words, from that little voice, each and every time I sell a moment short by connecting it with a moment of worry. Sure, one day she’ll grow up and have to figure things out on her own. She’ll find herself somewhere in this great big world. She’ll choose a profession and find love and live life on her own.

But not this day.

This day, she pretends she is a princess.

This day, she lets me steal kisses anytime I want.

This day, she plays dress-up in my high-heels and necklaces.

This day, she asks for an extra bedtime story, and I agree, without a second thought.

This day, she has to pull up a stool to help me in the kitchen because she can’t see over the countertops.

This day, I took in the moment. I memorized the ringlets that fall down her neck. I pulled out my camera and took a picture of her big-eyed expression when she’s really excited to tell me something. I heard each and every footstep as she ran across the kitchen to meet me at the door when I came home. I let her tell me the story (for the hundredth time) of Coco chasing the cat up a tree, and I listened as if it were the first time.

And now, I’m going to tiptoe into her room and say a prayer. I’m going to thank God for the beauty and the sweet simplicity that this day brought.

I snapshot of what these days typically look like. Braylen loves to dress herself and I still need to return those curtains on the desk.