One Day

My daughter was a handful this morning.

Tantrums about every little thing, refusing to do anything I asked of her, and in the 10 minutes I tried to walk away and get something done she decided to cover herself, her stuffed animals, and her little brother with half a bottle of lotion…by nap time, I’d had it.
As I cleaned up their mess while they napped like little angels who hadn’t just driven me to insanity, I stumbled upon the little tote bag she started carrying around after the spontaneous bath brought on by the lotion incident.

It was a bag she got from her 1st preschool experience at our church, and she decided to fill it up with what she sees as some of her most prized possessions:

A teddy bear from this year’s Valentine’s Day haul,
A little panda bear from Sunday School,
A pink block she stole from her brother’s block set,
A tiny pink skull she got to pick out when we shopped for Halloween decorations last year,
A mini Spider Man coloring book (she loves Spidey), and
A Paw Patrol helicopter flown by her favorite pup, Sky…

I immediately thought to myself: “How precious is this?” 🥺 There was such innocence in the possessions she chose to place in her private bag, just for herself. I thought of the things that will one day take their place in her bag of choice, which will undoubtedly be much more expensive than a canvas tote bag.

One day she’ll have makeup because her friends are wearing it, or she no longer sees herself as flawless just the way she is. One day she’ll have a cell phone full of messages between people she’ll want to hang out with more than mommy and daddy. One day she’ll have a license because she’ll have responsibilities far greater than going potty and having fun at preschool…

One day it will be these things she holds near and dear instead of the adorable little trinkets I found in her tote bag this morning, because one day, far sooner than I know, this morning’s challenging little girl will be a strong young lady preparing to face the world on her own…
So I’m going to love and squeeze on that beautiful, wild, curly-haired little girl just a little harder until that day comes. 💗

Follow my family on Instagram as we navigate the chaos of raising cubs @cubsandchaos. 🤎