Stop, Look, Listen

Today I had one of those parenting moments.  One of the good ones, not one filled with regret, but thankfulness that I took a moment to listen.

The boys were going to spend the day with their old teacher, while I went to a cooking class.  They were so excited, I do not have the words for how much they love Ms. Erin.  They have been talking about it all week, looking forward to spending some time with her, seeing her house, telling her all about their summer.  Every day this summer one or both of the boys has said something to the effect of "you should send a picture of this to Ms. Erin" or "when I see Ms. Erin again..." So they love her and miss her.

This morning, I was in the shower. Now the shower is a wonderful place for me.  With the fan on and the water beating down on my head, I can barely hear what is going on in the living room with the kids.  I can hear yelling and screaming, but normal play, it is blissful silence.  By nature I only take about a 5 minute shower, and I don't think it is too much to ask to be left alone for those brief moments. At seven, I believe that the boys can function without me for those few minutes, but alas, it almost never happens, usually in those five minutes, someone has to visit me to tell me something very important. Usually I ask before they start talking too much, "Is this something that can wait until I get out of the shower in five minutes?!!!!" 99 times out of a hundred, the answer should be yes!

Today, like just most days, I was rudely interrupted while shampooing my hair by Ryan.  I could not hear him, as I started to be frustrated in my mind, I looked at his face.  It was full of joy and anticipation, almost like Christmas Morning.   He blurted out something about what he wanted to do with Ms. Erin's dog Huckleberry. He giggled, and went back to play.

I took a breath and spent the rest of the shower glad I did not make him wait to tell me that little bit of nothing,  because it was so important to him, and that is all that really matters.

Strange Dreams

I had a strange dream about the NICU the other night. 

I don't remember a lot about it, but I do remember that as a safety precaution, they had implemented an odd way of entering the NICU.  You sat on the end of a long bungee cord, and then let go.  You shot past multiple floors, again and again, eventually settling at the entrance to the NICU.  I remember feeling terror as I flung through what felt like a tiny hole between the floors.  I remember wondering how you would evacuate all the tiny babies in a system that required you holding on to a bungee for dear life. 

Reflecting on it now, the dream was much less about how to get in and out of the NICU, but how if feels when you are living in it. Great extremes.  Highs and lows. Bouncing from one end of the spectrum to the others. 

Even 7 years later, my subconscious is still processing the experience. 

(It may have something to do with the NICU picnic we just went to last weekend) =)