Letting Go...

Sometimes as a parent, you just have to let go. No matter how busy you are, or how long your to-do list is, there are sometimes when you need to put yourself aside and put your children's happiness first. It's times like these when you ignore the dirty dishes, the messy kitchen, the livingroom that needs to be picked up, the vaccuming that needs to be done, or whatever pressing matter is at hand. You put all that aside to do a Thomas puzzle for the hundredth time, to read a Winnie the Pooh story for the 73rd time that day, to play Jump-jump, or to sing Itsy, bitsy yet again and again and again. It's worth it though, to see their smiles and hear their "love you's".

Well yesterday, I put it all aside and did just that. I was busy doing dishes after a day in the kitchen and all of a sudden I had a little girl pull up a chair beside me and repeat, "water, water, water..." I tried to let her play in the water, while I finished dishes next to her but that didn't work for long. I was getting too wet and frustrated that I wasn't getting much done. So I stepped aside and let her just play and play and play. I got out the mop and would occassionally just mop around her knowing it was messy, but she was having fun. I finished doing so much other work and she was blissfully happy just playing in the sink. Chris walked into the kitchen and commented on the mess, and I said I'd take care of it. Mopping the floors and doing a bit of extra laundry was well worth how happy she was. Here's a few pictures of my "letting go".