I’m a morning person. If the morning goes my way. I wake up refreshed after plenty of sleep. Make myself some coffee. Take a few minutes to catch up on email and social media from overnight. Sit down to read my Bible. About an hour later, I’m ready to tackle the day.

My daughter loves mornings too. Her way. Wake up when she wants. Do some drawing or watch a few shows. She might actually be ready to get dressed and start the day a couple of hours later.

The mornings we get her off to school aren’t like that. Those days, mornings can be rough.

She gets on the bus at seven. I wake her up at the last possible second so she’ll get plenty of rest. We do nothing but the basics. And she only has one speed. Slow-and-steady.

This morning, on a whim, I did things a little differently. Instead of sending the dogs in to wake her up, I went into her room. I quietly laid down beside her and rubbed her back. I said:

“Good morning. God gave us such a sweet daughter.”

She reached her hand out and I gave it a gentle kiss. 

 “I love you mommy.”

My fingers traced the features of her face. That not-so-little-any-more-face. In that instant, I tried to remember her as a baby. A toddler.

In that moment, I was grateful. That God chose me to be her mom.

The morning went so smoothly after that. She got right up and sat down to her breakfast. There wasn’t a hiccup in the whole routine. As we walked out the door, she said, 

“Didn’t you like the way I got up today, Mom?”

I did! I’m so proud of her. Taking that extra moment to love on her first thing seemed to make a huge difference in the rest of the morning.

I forget that sometimes. When we force things to slow down, things get better. Count to ten before you yell. Get around early enough that you’re not pushing her out the door. Pick up a few toys with her instead of stomping around demanding that she get things organized - right now!

Live grateful. 

Because the years we have together are gifts. Memories in the making every day. 

After she left, I felt compelled to pull out her photo album. The precious interaction in her bedroom had me filled to the brim with nostalgia. 

There’s a saying we read on social media:

“Behind every great kid is a mom who’s pretty sure she’s screwing it up.”

I know a lot of moms. And I know a lot of great kids. 

Take a lesson from me because I got this right today. Tell your children how much you love them. Rub their back. Praise their good qualities. 

By and large, we’re not screwing it up.

I'm linking up today at The Grateful Heart with Ember Grey.