enjoy the good

My mom is a very wise woman.  It's a really amazing blessing for me to have a mother who is still in the throws of child raising herself. It hasn't been long since she was wrestling toddlers and babies and those memories are fresh enough that she hasn't forgotten (this is the first Halloween she hasn't taken a child trick-or-treating), but long enough ago that she has valuable insight that she is willing to share when I ask.

My favorite thing she reminds me of is to "enjoy the good and tolerate the bad because neither last forever".  Sometimes those bads and goods are days, or moments of the day, or years.  3 has been a hard year for Eden (and by association, me).  She never had the terrible twos and I thought I was an amazing mother...then she turned 3 and decided to make up for it:)  Obedience has been a serious challenge for the entire last year, but the last week or so (with the exception of Sunday which I'll chalk up to Halloween and day-light savings time) she has really been trying to be obedient.  She's still a toddler, and I'm not saying she's perfect, but she's really been putting forth an effort.  I can see in her little eyes that she is trying to reign it in and do what I ask.  She has been incredibly helpful with Jorie and Brigham and is normally VERY patient with a brother who is CONSTANTLY at her side and wanting everything she has.

We were doing a little preschool with some friends, but that fell apart due to un-forseen circumstances, so now, I've started doing a little mommy preschool with Brig and Eeds.  Today was all about trains.  They loved tracing their names over my "train-track letters" (very hastily made because of a constipation issue from Briggs that needed my attention.  Luckily, they didn't care that it wasn't very legit.)

And so today, my thankful is for a little girl who is trying really hard to do what she should.  I'm so very proud of her.  To the girl who made me a momma, who teaches me that stages end, my forever guinea pig who is so very patient with my parenting blunders, my teacher-of-patience, the girl who stretches me to the point of growth, who forces me to my knees for guidance in helping her little spirit to grow and learn, my light and reason to smile at the end of the day, my Eden Annie.