First off, Happy Valentine's Day to you all! Jeff and I are waiting until Wednesday to celebrate our relatively new holiday, V-Delay! V-Delay comes two days after Valentine's Day and consists of each of us taking $5 and seeing who can get the best clearance Valentine's Day paraphernalia for the other. We both have the mindset that Valentine's Day can be cheesy and generic...so why not exploit that and make it fun(ny)? Our wedding anniversary is our special day to celebrate in the romantic manner.
So, as I said in my last blog post, I'm off of work as of last Friday through next Monday, enjoying the remainder of my parental leave time. Jeff was out of the house running around most of last Friday and Saturday which gave me lots of time with Shay Bug. And you know what? I'm learning so much from her.
JUST BE.
I've been so keyed up in my routine of work, taking care of baby, family time, errands & the damned never-ending To-Do List that I haven't stopped lately to just BE. Now let me insert the disclaimer that to just BE is a really difficult thing for me to understand, let alone do. I've read it in the bible, heard it preached in sermons, discussed it at length with my husband & friends and I get the concept but still didn't know HOW to actually DO it. Until now. There has never been a more real example to me than Shay. In her everyday life, she exemplifies what it means to just be. She doesn't fret about the future. She doesn't dwell on the past. There is only THIS moment and that's where she lives.
DON'T WORRY
With so much free time on my hands, my thoughts shifted from worrying about work to worrying about the future. Shay doesn't worry. She trusts that Mommy & Daddy are going to provide for her. I need to just trust that God will do the same for us, for me. As a parent, I love my child so very much and only want the best for her. How much more does God want that for His children?
BE YOURSELF
I LOVE Shay's innocence! I love that she is 100% not afraid to be herself. She doesn't worry about what other people will think of her. She isn't self-conscious. She doesn't get embarrassed. She has no fear of rejection. She hasn't yet been tainted by the crap that people and life will throw at her and formed walls to hide behind and defense mechanisms to keep herself from getting hurt. It makes me sad to know that as she grows older she will lose a some of that raw innocence. I have such a better understanding now as a parent of what God meant by putting such an emphasis on having a child-like heart.
RUN TO GOD
I hate it when Shay gets hurt or doesn't feel well and cries. As her mommy, I just can't stand to see her in any pain. But I love that she finds so much comfort when her Daddy & I just hold her. And she knows to come straight to us when she's in need of encouragement, cuddles, a hug...love. It's such an example to me of how I'm supposed to do the same with my heavenly Father. How often to I try to get my comfort from anything and anywhere but God?
JOY IN THE SIMPLE THINGS
Shay has so many crazy toys that light up, play music, teach concepts, move, etc. But you know what? She is happiest playing with a simple plastic bottle cap or batting around her bottles of lotion. As adults, we want the latest, greatest electronics, cars, houses, music, movies, gaming equipment, and the list goes on and on. How much more joy would we have in life to just find beauty in the simple things and appreciate what we already have?
Really, there is so much more that she's teaching me but I need to wrap it up. I'm sure I'll have more blogs on this topic. It's about time for her to wake up from her "cutie sleep" so we can all hit the Greenway on this beautiful day!
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