A Day with a Flow

Detectives discussing Things

Oh, this day was great. I lay with Ani tonight as she fell asleep, wondering what made it different. We'd had lots of things to accomplish - housey kinds of things - and I'd had a headache for much of the day, and we found more fleas this morning...so why am I feeling so content and satisfied with our day? If our days were always like this, or even often like this, I would never question why we have made the choices we've made - the attachment parenting, the homeschooling, the choices that absolutely enrich our lives and at the same time make them so much work so much of the time...

Unfortunately I didn't discover the key while I lay there, but here are some thoughts. It has so much to do with the dynamic between the girls, and today they were just in the flow. This requires so much "yes" from each of them, so much generosity and compromise and maturity - qualities they both possess, but rarely exhibit with each other. You know - it's the ones you love the most who so often are treated the worst? The day required less of me in some ways - they were needing less guidance and more quiet support - but I also feel like I did my job well today. I found a lot of "yes" in my day, more patience, more fun, and it all just made for a rather ordinary yet extraordinary day. SO - there were detectives out on the street, bright and early, searching for clues...to what I am not certain, but it was entertaining for the kids arriving for school across the street.

After pancakes there was drawing...

then facepainting (cats) and washing off of facepaints, and grocery shopping and lunch and a spontaneous herb bath (yarrow, lavender, calendula) and reading together...then cowgirls, complete with lego guns (an idea quickly adopted from their beloved boy cousins)...

Cowgirls adjusting holsters

and then to the library and home for smoothies and some pirate time (don't they look fierce!)...

Pirates with...upside-down tattoos

and finally good dinner (sweet potatoes, kale, tofu, peanut sauce over udon noodles) with a wonderful papa who came home early to be with us, some outdoor romping to finish off the day, and new library books and more Harry Potter before bed.

Whew. I dare not hope for more of this tomorrow, but my headache is gone, I'm feeling optimistic about the fleas (I mean, they're only fleas, right? They're not rats. Don't burst this little bubble of mine, ok?!) and I am feeling filled.