On Being Brave

This little girl is one brave cookie! She does not let fear get in the way of what she wants to accomplish. A little while ago, I needed to do something brave and a little bit scary...actually almost everyday I need to do something a little brave. Some days waking up and getting out the door for work is my brave task of the day:) Anyway, I needed to do something very brave and scary. I was a jittery about it and just sick! I felt so stupid to have gotten myself in the situation to begin with and I was nervous to deal with the consequences. As I was laying in bed, I realized that Sophie is much braver than me everyday. Everyday she talks to people who she has never met, accomplishes something new and even scary. I thought about the time I took her to the gymnastics preschool and she saw the marshmallow pit and jumped in without even a second thought. ( I wasn't even in with her at the time...I had to jump in there to get the little munchkin out:)

While in the marshmallow pit she saw that some much older kids were hanging on a rope and then dropping into the pit and she decided that she wanted to do that same thing. So she did. She waited her turn in line, I helped her onto the rope, she swung a few times while laughing and the plopped herself in the marshmallow pit! I was so proud of her! Then I realized that my daughter is an example to me. Sometimes, I just need to swing on the rope for a minute while laughing ...don't we all need a little bit more laughter? And then plop  myself in there and do what needs to get done. She is a perfect example of  bravery, determination, self control and lots of growth. We have been teaching Sophie not to touch the other kids and to be soft with them. I can see her using self control when she really just wants to give them the strongest bear hug they ever received and instead she softly gives them a high five.  I can see her growth everyday when she accomplishes new tasks and picks up her messes without me reminding her. I can see her growth when she counts to 3 or climbing up huge slides and just rolling down! She is such a beautiful example and I just feel so so lucky to be  her mom. I hope that I can always encourage her and never hold her back. I hope that I can always be brave and stick up for her when she needs me to. I hope that she will always be happy and know how much I love her! So, here's to laughing more and looking up to my baby as a beautiful example!

love,
em