One of the hardest parts of parenting a toddler is, for me, that my daughter spends so much time in her own little world. I wonder how much of her surroundings really sift through the whimsy and the fantasy and the whirling of her dreams. I wonder what she’s thinking of, dreaming of, wishing for? I catch her up close, squeeze her tight, smell her head. I have her scent memorized. I kiss her and I tell her that I love her. I wonder how much she understands?
She climbs across my lap in the afternoon and asks for kisses. When I deliver, she says LUB YOU! I wonder if she knows what that means. I wonder if she knows how much we love her, if she knows that she is our everything?
Then I think of the little ways we tell her we love her. Not the kisses and the hugs and the exclamation points. The small ways. The subtle ways. The sandwiches cut in heart shapes just because. The stories told twenty times in a row to make her laugh. The games of hide-and-seek that last an hour without her moving an inch.
Something tells me it’s getting through.
(6) -
I, too, wonder what is getting through or what “love oooo” means to her. I also wonder what “pwetty” means. This morning it was “Mama, pwetty. Chica (one of our dogs), pwetty.“ I’ll take it… but I wonder what “pwetty” means…
-
My niece is five, and her current conversations are an indicator that she understands much more than we ever anticipated.
PS. I so love your blog. It makes me look forward to the possibility of becoming a parent—and jealous for all the joy it brings to your life.
-
she is looking sooooo BIG in these photos!
love this post so much!
tara -
This is such a short and perfect post. I feel like so many people have forgotten that children not only remember their childhood’s but it’s our job to make them the kind of childhoods that are worth remembering. I hope to always do special things for my future kids so that one day they will think back and remember their life with a happy warm heart, and of course sweet thoughts of mother :)
-
This is such a sweet post. I love the idea of a heart-shaped sandwich.
By Alicia S. on July 13, 2011
I have learned to fashion dinosaurs shape out of his sandwiches… it better be getting through to mine! :-p