Monday motherhood lullabies

I got back from St. George just after midnight. So Monday morning was back to mom life. 

Abigail found some yellow accessories while I was unpacking my suitcase and she "dressed like a princess" for much of the day. She kind of looked more like a rocker. 

It was precious. Also, she purposely doesn't smile for pictures now because she knows it makes them blurry. "If I'm still and I don't smile, then it's okay... But if I'm still and I smile, it's blurry."  Sad but true, that is exactly how it works. Try as she might, she can not hold her face still while she smiles. So, instead, we get this:

Brady is in the "unload everything and make huge messes stage" so my house looks like it's been dusted with flash cards and candy land pieces. 

And sometimes one headband isn't enough. Also, how did she put on her belt by herself?!  And layer both headbands?!  I wasn't at the time, but looking at these pictures right now I'm just very impressed. 

I never curl my hair because it takes me so long to get it to look how I want it to. But I think it takes me so long because I only curl my hair about twice a year. So I decided I need to practice more often to get better and faster. Since I had no where to go and was confident I would see no one, I curled my hair and wore it like that for the day. The front looked alright but the back fell flat... Maybe because my layers in the back are longer and weigh the curls down more?  Not sure, but I really am getting better and faster. 

Also, our ground is covered in snow, so I put on a comfy sweater. And then this new scarf I bought in St. George for uncle Gary's funeral. And I wore my nicer riding boots instead of my fake uggs. So when we ended up going to the library after Brady woke up from nap, I actually looked pretty dressed up. Minus the makeup... Because there was none. I hate putting on makeup. 

When I wasn't looking, Abigail shared some Doritos with Brady. He wasn't impressed and threw them allll over the floor. And the rest were somehow all in his seat under his bum. Like a huge pile. And this was after she spilled a bunch of trail mix on the floor. I'd told her to leave it there so I could clean it up, but instead she decided to surprise me and clean it up herself... Back into the bag of untainted trail mix. I appreciate that she is so sweet and thoughtful, but it does tend to cause a number of inconveniences. 

After the library (Brady ripped the place apart, but as we were checking out books, the lady next to me told me multiple times, very sincerely, that I was a really good mother. I made some joke about trying to survive the day since Chris was in Wyoming from 5am til 10pm, but she insisted. I appreciate the kindness of strangers), we went to Walmart to get more gray totes and a few other things. Shopping is no problem when you only have to get five things!  But baby girl kept telling me she wanted to go home. And at home she asked to skip dinner and go straight to bed. I convinced her to eat some peas first but she was wiped out. After she was ready for bed, I'd gone of the room to chase Brady.  Then I came back to this:  

Poor kid. Also, poor Brady. He's the slowest teether ever so he's still working on his two top molars. But now he's also getting the two teeth on either side of his current bottom two. He's in a lot of pain. I rocked him and sang to him for a half hour. Whenever I sing to him, I sing the lullaby from the prince of Egypt. He loves it and even if he's screaming, he'll quiet down and cuddle into me within just a minute or two of singing the lullaby. So after twenty minutes, I stopped humming it and four seconds later, he let out a whimper. And another. And then lifted his head to look at me. When I started humming, he immediately burrowed back into my chest. I thought it was so hilariously cute that I did it about ten more times. Wait for his whines and whimpers and then watch him snuggle in again as soon as I started singing again. 

I'm grateful for Mother's Day and that I'd just had the opportunity to reflect on my significant role and responsibility as a mother. I think it gave me patience and helped me to delight in a situation that might have otherwise left me feeling tired and impatient. Now, it is just a very cherished moment for me to remember.