Wednesday, March 23, 2011

.....surreal spring days......

.....just because spring is officially here, doesn't mean mother nature in the northeast has to agree.....after a glorious two days of 70 degree weather last week, we were welcomed to our mid week hump day with a wintery mix.....


....wet, slushy puddles and rain mixed with over sized snow flakes.....it made a great day for catching up and calling a time out on the race of our routine.....and since Wednesdays are our only free days without anything on the calendar, this wet and chilly spring day meant doing a whole lot of whatever we wanted......


......so to escape from cabin fever, we pulled out the rain gear and walked to Luigi's for a pizza lunch......just me and my girls......



.....and although the girls were hungry and extremely well behaved for this spontaneous occasion, they were also very goofy......and would laugh at each other making silly faces when they took bites of their cheese pizza.......

.....Silly sister #1...... 


......and silly sister #2......


......and the silliness continued at our next snack time session.....






......and just when I was beginning to wonder how many more hours of silliness we were going to have to invent on a wet, cold indoor day; Sara sent a text with one of the best play date ideas we have done in a while.....let's practice dying Easter eggs down in the playroom......what a colorful and festive way to welcome spring, even on a day that feels like a whole lot of winter......

.......and I say it all the time.....I adore this building, this lifestyle of tight quartered living, this small group of friends that live no more than four floors away from us......because in no time at all, we had five toddlers and one sweet 10 month old laughing, giggling, making a mess, creative imaginations at work, talking about what color is their very favorite......and four Mommas who were all so very happy to see each other.......


.....and while this project needed all hands on deck, three of us rolled up our sleeves and Sara began to click away......documenting the excitement of the littles who were encouraged to get as messy as they wanted......capturing these days of toddler wonder.....






.....and they took us up on that offer to splash dye, mix the cups of color, double dip eggs, forgo the spoon and hand dip their little fingers.......







......but there was nothing like watching their awe and wonder when their first batch of eggs came out gleaming with spring color......






.....and not a moment goes by that isn't surreal these days.....knowing that within the next three weeks, we will have a newborn with us.....I am constantly wondering, during my days with the girls, if this will be the last meal, walk, bedtime, breakfast, story time, play date when it's just the three of us.....of course we are all over joyed at the thought of expanding our family.....God has blessed us with another babe that is already uniquely and wonderfully made.....and there will be a time when we will all say, what was life like before this baby joined our family?......

.......but there will be an adjustment period for a short time.....I will have to reinvent how to spontaneously walk out of the house for a pizza lunch......I will have to manage logistically how I will, on a whim; grab three kids and hit the pavement with our stroller to walk to Central Park.....we will have to share Momma's time, as the newborn feeding schedule can be quite demanding......and it wouldn't be honest if I didn't admit that I have some anxiety about it....knowing that for a brief glimpse in their lives, this will impact my girls.....there may be let downs of the things we are limited to do.....temporarily.....there may be less time for the things that feel so good; like cuddles in the morning, reading books on the floor, or making french toast to kill some time on a rainy morning.....just because we will have this new little miracle that will need all of us.....

.....but overshadowing my apprehensiveness on how am I going to do this or that? is the warm and joyous knowledge that we are never given more than we can handle......that millions of mothers have nurtured their families as they abundantly grow fuller with grace and compassion....I remind myself that as much as my girls may briefly feel the adjustment, they too will experience what it is like to have your heart grow bigger when you love another human being so extremely......and I will make a lot of mistakes trying to juggle three small children......I know there will be a lot for me to learn as I begin this new journey, but I know that each day I will give everything I have to each of them.....the difference between a good day and a bad day will be whether or not I was able to make each of them feel uniquely special.....whether I was able to ensure that when they close their eyes at night, they feel secure, peaceful, and no matter how the course of events of the day unfolded; that they will most certainly know how passionately they are all loved by their Momma.....


.....and I know I will eventually get a groove on how to manage each of them individually......I will learn what makes each one feel exceptional.....I will understand how to ensure each of them feels like they are making some of their own rules too.....and it will take some trial and error, but I like to think that over time, in the end when they eventually leave the nest of our home; they will look back and know that they were each remarkable, significant and were loved uniquely for their own extraordinary characteristics......


.....and I hope that they would say, we savored every minute of the journey......