Normal and Ordinary
I got up with Kieran, my eleven-month-old, at 5:15 this morning. Normal. We came downstairs and I gave him his breakfast. My big boy came down around 6:00 and I got him his breakfast. We sat at the table, just the three of us, enjoying our cereal and discussing Soren's dream. I used to talk about my dreams with my mom every morning, too. He has some pretty interesting things going on in his three-and-a-half-year-old brain. Last night, his dream involved a monster outside of his window. The monster was angry because she couldn't find her baby. She thought Soren was her baby, but he explained that he wasn't. Um, that's some serious stuff and would probably be terrifying, but he was just explaining it like he always does.
So, as usual, we talked about the fact that dreams aren't real. They're just our brains still working while we're asleep. He knows that very well because we say it every time. He even reminds me of this when I have weird dreams. Sometimes we make 'books' about his dreams. I staple construction paper together and write one sentence on each page. Then he makes the pictures. I've been doing this for over a year. Soren has some really involved dreams and the books help him to realize they are just stories he tells himself while he's sleeping.
My husband came down and we had our coffee together. Soren asked us how his brain works and if it has gears inside that make it work. We did our best to explain how our brains work on a precocious three-year-old level. Then my husband hung out with the boys so that I could take a shower. YAY! When I came downstairs, Kieran started taking a few steps. He's been on the verge of walking for weeks. Bill actually counted six steps in a row today! The best part was when Soren came into the room and I told him that Kieran had taken six steps all by himself. Soren ran over to Kieran, threw his arms around him and said, 'Good job, Kieran! I'm so proud of you!' I'd be telling you a big, fat lie if I said I didn't get a little choked up at that moment.
I put the baby down for his morning nap and came back downstairs to hang out with Soren. He was watching Superman, his favorite of all super heroes. After his show, I got out the workbooks and he sat patiently while we did six math pages and then worked on letter sounds. Then we did some painting and built with blocks.
When Kieran got up from his nap, we packed up and went to the park. Soren found a little girl to play with and I chatted with her grandmother and tried to keep Kieran entertained. He really just wanted to be set free on the playground. He wants to do everything Soren does. We played until lunchtime and then we went home. After lunch, I decided to put them in the bathtub together. Soren was full of mud from the park and Kieran was a little overdue for his bath, so I didn't want to put them down for their naps all dirty and gross. Up until today, Kieran's been in the baby tub that you put into the real bathtub. I was afraid he would fall back or slip around too much, but he didn't. Soren actually helped wash him and Kieran just laughed and splashed the entire time. They were so cute and shiny with bubbles in their hair, giggling like they had never been happier.
I put Kieran down for his nap and then took Soren up to his room. We read our usual two stories and sang our three songs. I kissed him and said, 'I love you my love.'
That's my day so far. It may not sound exciting, but it is. It's beautiful, peaceful and going smoothly. If you're a parent, you know those days are rare and to be cherished! That's really why I'm writing this blog. I want to remember what this feels like so that, when I have the inevitable horrendous day, I can remind myself of how good it can be.
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