Exhaustingly Joyful

I'm a firm believer that the "terrible twos" really begin about 3 or 3 1/2 years old! And this time is not really terrible (or so I try to put this thought "out to the universe")! Rather it is exhaustingly joyful--the snuggles as we read bedtime stories, the inconsolable injuries (physical and emotional)--I truly mean inconsolable, the many creative pictures of Millie and mommy, the hours of changing Barbie and Polly clothes, the "you're the meanest mom ever" to "you're the best mommy ever" in almost the same breath, the out-of-the-blue hug and caress on the cheeks from the cutest little hands, and the list goes on!  I mean, some days I could just smother her with loves. And other days I could just put her out on the porch with a "FREE" sign hanging around her neck!  

But just look at this face--who could think such a thought!   

Just the other day, I had a neighbor stop me in the hall at church--she needed to tell me about an incident that she had with Millie recently.  I immediately began apologizing and thinking the worst.  However, she proceeded to tell me that our little Millie was an answer to her prayers.   I didn't see that coming!  Her eyes welled up with tears as she explained that she has had to face some difficult challenges lately, and through her prayers, has pleaded for extra strength.  One particular difficult morning, the doorbell rang. It was Millie with a handful of flowers (hand-picked from another neighbor's yard, of course!), and said that she brought them especially for her.  My neighbor was extremely touched and felt that little gesture from a 3-year-old to be an answer to her prayers.  

Are you SURE it was Millie?

Now, if you know Millie at all, no one can even LOOK HER WAY without a scowl and a grunt from her and often a high-pitched scream--yes, she even does this to her mother!  

After hearing that she approached a neighbor's house (whom she barely knows) and rang the doorbell all by herself, I, too, know that there was a little bit of heaven guiding her that morning to cheer up our discouraged neighbor with borrowed flowers from someone's garden! 

How I love, love, love the lessons that my little ones teach me.  And I'll take those scowls, grunts, and tantrums for those precious heaven-sent moments that reminds me what I signed up for!