We have two beautiful children. A girl, and a boy, exactly 23 months between them.
Our daughter is a whirlwind of energy. Her name 'Vivienne' is french for 'lively' and I don't think I could imagine a more appropriate name. From the beginning of each day she is constantly on the go, racing here there and everywhere - exploring, using her imagination, keen to discover new things. She loves having stories read to her, and her current favourites are the 'Greedy cat' series and 'Mrs. Wishy Washy'. She loves to sing and play with her dolls house, telling me all about what the dolls are doing. This morning it was: 'the dolls are in timeout' because 'they didn't eat their dinner' - her explanation as to why all the dolls were crammed into one room of the dolls house (with all the furniture too for good measure). She drives me mad with her obsession with 'The Wiggles' and insisting on naming colours for the wiggle they correspond to. For instance, her favourite yellow top is her 'sam top' (Sam is the yellow wiggle for those not in the know!) and her favourite purple cup is her 'Jeff cup'. She currently thinks it is hilarious to go into our bedroom in the morning and shout 'wake up Daddy' to her sleeping father. Vivi doesn't just sit back and let life pass her by, she actively pursues it and knows exactly what she wants. I admire her determination and persistance.
Our son, Henry is 15 weeks old. He has a cute little blonde mohawk and blue eyes. On the whole he is a really settled and sweet boy. One of the things I love about him are those little moments you get where you really understand the innocence of babies at this age - those smiles they give you that lights up their whole face, the way they hold their hands in front of them and look at them in wonder and you can just imagine them thinking 'wow, these are mine!'. I love the way that he curls his body up into the foetal position when I pick him up out of his bassinet in the morning. I love his perfectly formed fingers and tiny little toes. I love how fragile he is and how forgiving. He forgives me for not being able to run to him every time he cries, he forgives me for having to put his needs second sometimes as I juggle being the mother to two children. He forgives me my faults and gives me those sweet little smiles that melt my heart.And as to parenthood itself? well this is probably a cliche but it has given my life so much more meaning. You no longer put yourself and your own needs first, but that of your children. Life before Vivi and Henry just seems so empty and meaningless now when I look back on it. As overwhelmed as I feel at times, and in the depths of despair because nothing is going as planned I still feel an incredible sense of privilege at being able to be a parent.
Very well said xx
ReplyDelete