My sweet Alynn Rose

Disclaimer: I had to write an essay in class and this is what it turned out as for the first draft. I actually really enjoy it because it is true. Also, I don't want anyone to think that I feel anything less than love and adoration for Drew. I just never write about Alynn any more. :) 

 

                Often as adults it is easy to lose ourselves in the daily hustle and bustle of life. As one growsolder, we forget to stop and wonder at the world unfolding around us. How quick it is to only see whatwe need to do and the time constraint to do it. That is where children become priceless. A grown up can learn so much from a small child if they take the time to stop, observe and grow. This was a lesson I am continuing to learn from my own child. From the moment Alynn wakes up to the moment she goes to bed she is making this world a brighter, fuller and better place; and I am a better person for having her in my life. 

                Alynn starts her morning with a smile on her face, a smile that causes a dimple to appear on her  left cheek. I often over hear her bubbly little baby voice before I even set eyes on her. When she sees me peeking into her nursery her face lights up and she will bounce up and down in her crib, eager to start her day. She will follow any adult around like a friendly puppy, her eyes a glow with the joy of simply being alive. How happy she is, just to explore her every expanding world. Where I find our home boring and mundane, she finds it a new adventure every day. Like Lewis and Clark blazing a new train, Alynn finds clever hiding spots within the kitchen cabinets, innovative toys in the laundry room, and challenging obstacles around the chairs.  With every clean up, she learns newer and more effective ways to get her toys. If only we as adults could greet new challenges with such enthusiasm and picture our world not out to get us but simply as new test we must face. She does not view the laundry basket blocking her path to the pile of clean clothes as her enemy but as an obstacle she must overcome, with great determination she fights her way through until she reaches her goal. 

                Alynn learns something new every day. This world her class room, and she soaks it all in like a sponge. As a young child, everything is fresh and exciting. She has to taste, feel, and experience all that life has to offer her. I love watching her learning something new, her round sapphire eyes will twinkle with the fresh knowledge. She little rose bud lips will pucker in concentration and once she has mastered her new skill her smile will light up her face. Even the simplest thing to us is stimulating and thrilling to her. How boring our learning is when we think we know it all already, this is a big world and there is no end to learning. 

                Alynn is content to use what is around her to her advantage. She is a clever little fox. I have often watched her sneak up to her older brother, snatch away his toy and crawl away before he realizes it is missing. She is quick to take and quicker to trade. Her brother has learned he can barter with her and she will happily take what is offered. Being picky is not a part of her character. All she wants is to be included and played with. Alynn will play with his abandoned toy that he has disregarded with no affection and lovingly uses them. Her kind heart is already content to use what others have discarded. When she is playing with her stuffed animals she is gentle, or as gentle as a one year old can be. She adores animals of all kinds and causes them no harm. How much kinder and gentler should we be as adults if a baby can show kindness to abandoned toys and scruffy stuffed animals? These things have no feelings, and yet it is often the things that feel the most we are the most unkind to. A child is selfish, and yet she is willing to exchange her toy for another. 

                Throughout her day Alynn looks for reassurance. When she is eating her meals her father and I have to stay within her sight or she will twist around until she can see us. When she is playing, she will wonder over to check that she is not alone. If she goes a time without seeing someone she will run up and greet them with her favorite word, “hi”. When she is hurt or sad, she seeks comfort that only a loving parent can give, burrowing her silky red hair into a shoulder. She follows happily and seeks approval. She trusts blindly knowing that those who love her only want the best. She is not cynical about the world and sees only the best in others. The paramount of human natures is still hers, un-bruised and Unsoiled. There is so much to be learned from a child, one just has to listen. 

My sweet Alynn, I am so blessed to be your mommy!!