remember these kind of days...

yesterday was too nice outside to stay indoors. when zella got up i asked her what she wanted to do today. she said go on a picnic. so we rode our bikes up to the park and had a picnic. we snacked on cheese sticks and apples. we played with the tea set we brought and had a great tea party at the park.

after we drank all of our tea and at all of our food, we went to the playground. we had the entire park to ourselves. nobody was there. so we climbed, swung, slid, jumped, chased and laughed. we had a great time. after a while, i wanted to swing. they have this big red chair-swing, perfect for leaning back on. so i was swinging in it and zella wanted to sit on my lap. we were swinging as high as we could. i was tilting my head back, so that i could look straight at the sky. this is when my heart became so full. i was overwhelmed. and i was so thankful to be her mommy. i told zella that i hope she remembers days like these. the kind of day that we ditched all of our normal plans to go and play at the park. the kind of day that she is the most important person in my life. the kind of day that was filled with so much joy and fun. days that we spent together, just her and i. i told her that having a tea party was one of my favorite things. i said that i loved her so much and i hope she remembers that.

i was holding her as tight as i could on my lap, swinging as high as we could. i asked her if she would stop growing up. that i wanted her to stay my little girl forever. she asked me why, and i said that each day she lives gets us one day closer to the day she will move out of our house to live on her own. and each day gets her closer to the day she meets the man she will fall in love with and marry. and that i will love my job as a grandmother, i love her where she is right now. she looked at me and said, i don't want to move out. i want to live with you and daddy forever. me too baby, me too. but then reality set in and i told her that one day she will want to move out, get married and start her own family. and that daddy and i would be really happy for her when that time comes. she turned her head around and said, but you like me at five? yes baby, i like you at five!

jill b