Things I Did for You Today

October 6, 2012

This post was inspired by an article I read at 3:45 in the morning yesterday (explained why below).
It was about Moms Staying in the Picture. It’s hard to quantify what we moms do exactly sometimes,but this author did a good job of it. It made me think of all the mom-ish things I do for Faith in a day that she doesn’t even realize, just like I didn’t realize what my mom all did for me until I became a mom. Anyway, here’s what I came up with. I hope she will come to appreciate it one day.

-I got up at 6 a.m. rather than 6:30 so that I could spend the time you’re awake in the morning talking/playing with you rather than getting ready.
-I put more thought into what you would wear to school than what I would wear to work.
 -I spoon fed you cereal while you watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
 -I let you pick out the color of your Flinstones vitamin because it makes taking it that more exciting.
-I moussed my hair rather than blow-drying and straightening it, so that I could brush the snarls out of your curly mop and pull it back into a pony.

 -I thought about you at my desk and hoped you were having fun with your friends at daycare.
-I googled homemade alligator costumes.
-I went to the bookstore to pick up a gift for a friend and couldn’t help but buy you a book while I was there.
 -I debated what cough medicine to buy at Target for at least 15 minutes.
-I called your grandma to chat and talked about you the whole time.

-I stole animal crackers from our snack spot at work so you would have something to munch on on the drive home.

-I beamed with pride when Miss Lindsey at daycare told me you had no accidents again.
-I endured “Rubber Ducky” repeatedly on the way home from daycare at your request.
 -I ate a semi-cold meal, not caring because you ate everything on your plate.

-I let you run around naked while your bathwater got cold because you were having too much fun to stop.
-I allowed you to wear a “pretty dress” to bed because it’s one of the little things that make you happy.
 -I endured your screams of protest while I brushed your teeth because I know someday you’ll value pearly whites.

-I read the same book for bedtime three times for the third night in a row because you just like it that much.
-I prayed for you, with you.
-I checked on you before I went to bed to make sure you were comfortable, found you on the floor and moved you up to the bed.

-I winced every time you coughed in the middle of the night.

-When you work up with a low fever, I brought you into our bed so I could keep one eye open and on you.

-When you fell back to sleep, I went downstairs because I couldn’t sleep, got on the computer and typed this all up at 3:47 in the morning.
-I wished I could take away your sickness, just like I do every single time you’re sick.

I will end this post with our most recent example of “me in the picture.” On my birthday I took Faith to JCPenney for “Fancy Nancy” pictures. We had too much fun! Sorry for the picture of a picture, but you get the general idea. She will either look back on this with fond memories or just be really embarrassed by how dorky her mom can be.