I printed a photo book with Jaclyn’s first months with us. I captured her smiles, her curiosity, her cuteness. But her true rich joyous self is only now beginning to show.
I may love her more, because I’m looking through bias glasses, but seeing her in depth, she is marvelous: Stubborn, proud, kind, a quick study, loving beyond measure, with the memory of an elephant.
I wonder these days, as we “breeze” through the long summer vacation, what do we do to fill her cup? We give her a front row seat to our lives. We love her, nurture, nourish, her body and her mind. We play games, we explain words, we read stories, but often we let her discover the world at her own pace. She runs, and climbs, jumps (long jumps, trampoline jumps) gets dirty… we travel, we hike, we make her sleep after lunch and at night, despite what she thinks she needs. She knows what consequences mean, in theory and practice. She has responsibilities: keeping track of her toys, and putting them away from the common area.
But… Is this what parenting should be? Do we do it right? The age long question. My mind wonders. But my heart feels at peace.