There was a moment yesterday afternoon. I sat on the couch, nursing my baby. My legs curled under me as I cradled his still small but rapidly growing little body. My girl bounced about, looking for very specific toys and chattering about her plans as she went.
We’ve come a long way since the early days, when she felt lost and alone during these late afternoon nursing sessions. Now they are just part of our lives. Feeding and cuddling and playing and dinner making in one tangled string of afternoon turning into evening.
Something, and darned if I can remember what now, made her laugh. A brilliant smile stretched across her still small but rapidly growing little face. Her head dipped back as the giggles erupted. My girl has always had the best laugh. It’s the sound you hear in your head when you think about the laugh of a child. So perfectly rolling and building on itself. You can’t not smile when those giggles fill the air.
Baby boy, never to be left out of anything to do with smiles or giggles, popped off and looked up at me with wide eyes. I smiled down at him. Because as much as I tell my girl to let us be and not distract when he is nursing, I really love that just-popped-off-to-check-things-out face. He flashed his brilliant gummy grin up at me, the one that bursts with happiness. His smile pushes rain clouds clear out of the way. His smile is my sunshine.
And there they were. My two kids and their radiant smiles and intoxicating giggles, right there within my arms reach. Without turning my head or straining my eyes, I could see them both. One frame, two glorious, happy little faces.
When I think back on this week, that is what I want to remember. That is what I am thankful for – that moment. That moment of pure, simple, feel it in your belly happiness.
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This week’s photo-365. I’m so loving this project and the snapshots I now have of the past 52 days. I glance through them all about once a week and the feeling of each day pops so vividly from the moment I captured. 2013 promises to have it’s ups and downs and I look forward to reliving the roller coaster when all is said and done.
Happy weekend to you. I’ll be sharing some words straight from my heart here this weekend and, at the same time, burying myself in my family for more belly-happy moments.