Someday

This is one of my favorite books to read to Bella.  If you do not own this book, you have got to check it out!

  

And typically, this is not a book I get to read to her often, because nowadays she picks the books which means we stick to a few consistent favorites.  But tonight, for whatever reason, this was the book she chose.  And we didn't read it just once, no, we read it three times!  And each time I read it, I saw it through a different set of eyes.

This Mom's eyes--What an amazing thing it is to be a mother.  To know and love a little one from the very beginning and to watch them, grow and change day by day.  This book reminds me of all the wonderful moments I have had with Bella, like that first night in the hospital alone together, but also of all the memories we have yet to make, like her first bike ride, when she learns to swing all by herself, and even when she becomes a mom herself many years from now.  And as I read each line, I thought of how much I truly love this little girl who was sitting in my lap, and how I can't imagine ever loving any little one anymore than I already love her. 

Eyes of another Mother--Reading through this book a second time, things hit a little differently.  As I read the line, "Sometimes, when you sleep, I watch you dream and I dream too…"  I suddenly thought of a sweet mom of four I know, who had these same dreams for her own little girl.  Yet for her, they remain to be only dreams for dear Hanna, because she is in God's hands and has been there for too many years now.  Yet even from Heaven, she is still fulfilling dreams, dreams I am sure this mother never imagined for her little girl, and touching so many lives.  As I read through and thought of this family, I choked back tears as I was reminded of this family's loss, saying a silent prayer, as I read the lines that followed.

Bella's eyes--As we flipped back through the book a third time, I wondered why Bella wanted to read this book again and again.  Then I realized, this was one of the few books that had real people in it. Most of her favorites feature animals like hippos throwing a party, or a mommy dog and her puppy.  Even her princess books, while Ariel and Belle are human, they aren't so realistic.   But this book simply features a mom and her little girl, and Bella liked that.  She asked "what's that?" for every picture, and we talked about the simple things, the mommy holding her little girl's hand as they crossed the street.  The mommy brushing her little girl's hair, and the baby crying (Bella loved making the crying sound over and over).  Bella may not understand the magnitude of this book in my heart, and all the emotions it stirs up each time I read it.  Yet she was able to bring me back to where we were, right there in that moment.  Mommy and baby loving each other, just like the characters in the book.  

Someday, Bella will do great things.  Every mother believes this about their child, and every child does it, in their own way and their own time.  So until then, I am going to enjoy every precious moment I have with my dear sweet baby girl.