Pure Joy

As summer fades to Fall..."It's time for night time," I tell you.

"Rock me," you plead.

And I do...longer than I should. I rock you and hold you tight...tighter than I should. Surely there is a point where the squeezing knocks the wind right out of you. You seem content. And so am I. You take your paci out. Yep, you still use your paci at night.

"I love you so much," you say.

Finally I carry you over to your crib. Yes, you're still in your crib. It's an old house with steep stairs. We sleep better with you still in your crib. It feels safer.

"Rub my back," you say (in a bit of a bossy tone).

I do. I rub your back and tell you I love you. I tell you that we will take an adventure tomorrow.

"Venture," you scream.

Everything has become "an adventure" from a short walk to a trip to Target. You love your "venutres!"

And you have entered the "what's that?" phase.

The months have flown by like one of those little flip books with cartoons. You're turning 2.5 in a few weeks. The milestone of you turning one literally feels like it just happened. And now you're 2.5. And soon you will be 3 and 4 and 5.

Your pure joy for life is contagious. Your curiosity has made me more curious. Your smile ignites my happiness every single day.