Princess Lilah

The knowingness of little girls

Is hidden underneath their curls.

-- Phyllis McGinley

 

Smile

“Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” 

-Mother Teresa

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Are...

You are smart.

You are focused.

You are inquisitive.

You are observant.

You are joyful.

You are feisty.





 

You are determined.

 







You are thoughtful.

You are honest.

And no matter what, never forget that your very existence makes me unbelievably happy.

“You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”

-Kathryn Stockett, The Help

 

 

And you, tiny one? You are a million rays of sunshine wrapped up in a snuggly, smiley, sleepy little package.  The rest remains to be seen!

 

 Linking up with Stasha's Listicles 
for a list of 10 compliments.



Great Expectations

“That was the thing about the world: it wasn't that things were harder than you thought they were going to be, it was that they were hard in ways that you didn't expect.” ― Lev Grossman

I think it's safe to say that this very same quote could be applied to parenthood.

Sure, I had high expectations for myself as a mother.  Didn't we all, before we became parents?

Turns out mine were fairly lofty, given my experience in working with kids and my knowledge of child development.  Today I'm over at Greta's place talking about the great expectations I brought to motherhood from my professional role as a speech-language pathologist.

Greta lives it up in Kansas, g-funk style, and looks after her four kids, all while wearing her sassy pants.  Now that's one busy mama! She's funky, she's fun, and she just threw a rainbow-themed party for two of her girls, one of whom just turned three.  Great minds think alike.  Come visit me over at GFunkified!

Sibling Bonding

So far, they're getting along beautifully...

"A brother is a friend given by Nature." ~Jean Baptiste Legouve

The Working Mother

"At work, you think of the children you have left at home. At home, you think of the work you've left unfinished. Such a struggle is unleashed within yourself. Your heart is rent."  - Golda Meir

Linking up with friends at:

And:

Wordless Wednesday: A Nice Start

"Children are such a nice way to start people." 

Outside Looking In

Things I Am Great At

Last week I said I would write a list of things I am great at to balance out the list 10 things at which I totally suck.  I wanted to do this, not out of self-aggrandizement or to make myself look better in the eyes of others, but out of a desire to to stay positive and optimistic.  I believe that what you put out into the universe matters, and I work hard to tip the balance of my own output more towards the positive than the negative.  And this space - this little corner of the internet that I call my own - is a cornerstone of that positivity.  I need to be kind to myself here.  Because, if I can't do that here, where can I do it?

But this list is proving even harder to write than I could have imagined.  I am tempted to joke around or be self-deprecating; to say things like "I am great at starting things and not finishing them."  I want to qualify each statement, with a "but" or a "sometimes" or an explanation of what makes me think I am good at these things or of who put that idea into my head.  But to do that would be to remove much of the power of this exercise.  And so here I sit, forcing myself to make bold, unqualified statements about things at which I consider myself to be very good.  I am skipping the numbered list format, just this once, because it isn't important how many items I come up with, simply that I do.

I am good at knowing myself; knowing my limits, projecting how I am likely to react in a given situation, and planning accordingly.

I am a natural athlete.

I throw myself whole-heartedly into my passions.

I am good at letting others know where my personal boundaries are and I am good at saying no when necessary.

I am great at eating.  (I know, I know, I wasn't supposed to do that.  But I couldn't help myself.  I was raised to consider this a great skill.)

I am great at keeping others' secrets.

I am good at bending the rules just a touch to suit my own purposes while still continuing to be a generally rule-abiding, productive citizen.

I am strong and determined.

I have a great track record for creating cute offspring.  One for one so far!

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?...
......................................................

...And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people
permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.

—Marianne Williamson

Your turn!  What are you great at?

A Daughter...

 

"A daughter may outgrow your lap,

but she will never outgrow your heart."

-Author Unknown

Never Doubt...

A Margaret Mead quote painted on the side of a building in my 'hood:

 

(Have I mentioned I love where I live?)

In the Eyes of a Child

There are no seven wonders of the world in the eyes of a child. There are seven million. 

~Walt Streightiff

 

Wednesday of Few Words: Swing

"The world is a playground, and life is pushing my swing."

-Natalie Kocsis