Mama Just Loves Being With You

"It doesn’t matter what we do, Mama just loves to be with you."

We read that line weekly in a book called Mommy Loves You, and lately, it’s been tugging at my heartstrings more than ever.

These past few days have felt overwhelming. Weekends are the hardest because I don’t have my best friend—my husband—here with me.

I’ve felt tired, sometimes even a little dread, as life keeps moving in full force around me. When I don’t have time to "reset" during the day, I struggle to regulate my emotions. Taking care of a toddler, managing both of our feelings, decoding what she wants, teaching manners, combating “no’s,” and working from home—it’s a lot.

But oh, those giggles, smiles, and mischievous little grins? Bringing books to me, and all of her stuffed animals? They are everything.

I recently bought Nora large, egg-shaped crayons and a 100-foot roll of brown table paper. Watching her learn and explore has been so much fun (thankfully, she hasn’t discovered that crayons work on walls—yet!). She takes her time to think things through, her tiny hands moving carefully and thoughtfully. She’s gentle (most of the time—sorry, Willow) and so silly. While she enjoyed the drawing, her favorite part was putting the crayons back in their container and pushing the lid down, just a little more. Moments like these remind me how much I love watching her learn.

Oh, and she started walking without assistance recently (more on that in another post—what a milestone!).

I love being her Mama.

The other day, we were at UPS picking up packages (did you know you can rent a mailbox? I’ll explain that in another post). A woman commented on how cute Nora was. As she left, she smiled and said, "Be sure to enjoy her." Without hesitation, I said, "I do, every day."

Even with the tears, the communication struggles, the "no’s" that really mean "yes," the Nora-nados (yes, toy tornadoes are real), and everything in between—Nora is the kindest, sweetest little lady. I’m so lucky to be her Mama. I’m so lucky I get to love her.

Mama just loves being with you, my girl.