Here on the cusp of spring…or really, deep in the glorious wonder of it…life is beginning to settle. For the past three nights, Nicholas has slept longer at night and wanted to nurse less when he did wake up, taking up the slack during the day. Last night, for a wonder, Julianna actually slept through. And so this morning, I sprang out of bed at 5:10 to nurse, having only been up once in the night, and by 5:30 I was outside walking. Determined, at last, to get going on the exercise routine I so desperately need. I felt energized, awake. There was a spring in my step that I haven’t felt since mid-pregnancy.
And so I have decided that today is the day when things change. The day when I will no longer focus on being tired and grouchy, but instead drink deep of the sweetness of life…the day when I will stop whining about the mess in the house, and clean it up instead…the day when I tell the voice whispering Murphy’s Law in my head to be quiet, and look for the positive instead…the day when I will reclaim my life.
And so this early morning, I thank God for a quiet back yard, with the trickle of water in the creek, and without traffic noise…
…for the cacophony of birds making a joyful, disorganized noise
…for pink dogwood and double daffodil and multicolored tulips
…for the explosion of yellow-green in the woods that appeared overnight
…for dozens of leaves on the sugar maple sapling that barely survived last year
…for iris buds shooting skyward along the east foundation of the house
…for the fine mist that dampened my hair as I walked
…for a new high-back swing made of heavy logs, to enjoy it all
…for the husband who put it together
…for a four-year-old who throws himself, heart and soul, into every aspect of his life
…for a two-year-old who has suddenly become chubby and, if possible, even more adorable (and chewable!) as she totters on the edge of biped mobility
…for a six-week-old, newly baptized, who is just sweet as can be
…for the smell of chrism
…for the joy of having family and friends in the house
…for so much to be thankful for that by the time I get to the computer to write them down, I can’t even remember half of them.
Upstairs, my family is stirring. Bring it on.
