Powerfully Rich

Whatever ailed Anna Grace has subsided. Can I hear an AMEN? And a deep breath? The "this too shall pass" cliche really is a useful one. Looking forward is always the key to getting through right now. Anna Grace is still high maintenance, but she's back to being consolable. In fact, as I write she is enjoying her second good nap of the day.

I should be hanging up laundry from the dryer to avoid having to fluff it YET AGAIN. Those baskets on the couch are just for the stuff that doesn't get hung up. In an effort to avoid any ironing, we hang all daywear.

But anyway, I just had to run in here and write about how much I love Anna. You see, she started smiling a couple weeks ago, but they were rather uninspiring, dutiful smiles, in response to my smiles. Well, earlier today, she flashed me a full-face, full-heart smile that immediately released the flood gate of motherly-bliss tears. It was one of those moments. Can the beauty of mothering, the miracle of mothering, be garnered up into one aha moment? Yes, it can. I have these moments from time to time. They are powerful. They can't easily be put into words, and yet they speak volumes.

Thank you, Lord, for the chaos, the busyness, the sleeplessness, the endless messes. I will gladly endure, for the sake of these aha moments. Thank you for the powerfully rich experience that is mothering.