Brandt's Quotes

I wanted to share a few of my favorite quotes from Brandt this week.

"Mom, do you know what?" Brandt asked from his car seat.
"What?" I asked.
"I'm glad we're in this beautiful Earth" he said.
"Yeah" I replied, smiling. "Me too."

* * * 

From his position riding piggy-back up the stairs, Brandt said,
"Mom, your head is so beautiful and hairy."

This made me stop on the stairs and belly laugh!  Then Brandt started laughing, and when I finally made it upstairs we tumbled onto his bed giggling.

* * * 

While coloring quietly at the table with me, 
"Mom, it's so cuddly at home."

This one made me feel like a good mom, which was nice because even though I know I'm a good mom, sometimes I don't feel like enough.

Brandt is at such a fun age.  I love the original way he expresses himself, which sometimes makes me shake my hairy head in delight at a peek at the world from his perspective.  

Moments of Beauty

Hustling, my mind full of disquiet from accounting for backpacks, shoes, jackets, instruments and three clean-faced boys (Brandt's face doesn't have to be clean at this stage of my day), I backed out of my garage because, once again, we were too late to walk and I would have to drive the kids down the block and around the corner to the school.

At the end of the driveway I froze with my foot on the brake pedal.

"Woah, look!" someone said.

Two enormous hot air balloons were drifting slowly over our neighborhood.  I mean, they were probably normal size, but they looked enormous because they were so low.  Their colors were bright and the morning sun shone behind them.  I became aware of the music that was playing on the radio (Capriccio: Moonlight Music by Richard Strauss).  I started driving down the street toward the balloons, then stopped at the intersection so we could watch their peaceful movement.  We watched the flame ignite under one balloon, then the other, heating the air to prevent their baskets from scraping the tiles on a nearby roof, so it seemed.  Gradually, they grew farther away, and I remembered that the kids would soon be late for school.  I started driving, the song ended, and the moment was past.

***

It was bedtime.  All the boys were upstairs brushing teeth, shoving at each other, laughing, taunting.  Except for Brandt, who was sitting quietly on the dark stairs next to the built-in night light.  I sat down next to him and kissed his round cheek.  He smiled, then looked at the tiny moth that was walking on the glass of the light.  The moth stopped.  

"Look."  He said. "It's a bug."

"A moth." I said.  I watched Brandt as he watched it, his face golden in the light, then I pursed my lips and blew gently at the moth.   My breath ruffled its wings, and it walked along the glass to the edge of the frame until it was partially hidden under it.  

Brandt frowned.  "I wanted to touch it," he said.

Its back half was still visible.  "Touch it." I said.  

Brandt raised his finger and softly touched its wings.  He drew his hand back and smiled and the moth squeezed between the glass and the frame to slip inside to the light.  I grabbed Brandt, hugged and kissed him, and took him up the stairs.

***

I was driving along the back of the grocery store parking lot with my trunk full of fruit and vegetables (and maybe a handful of bulk-bin chocolate-covered raisins) when suddenly a gust of wind picked up  the leaves that were strewn along the ground and lifted them into the air, tossing them across my path.  The sun shone on their lighter under-sides and I felt like I was driving through golden-brown glitter.  Just then a man in a sports car rounded the bend and drove past me.  I looked at his face as he passed.  I was sure he hadn't noticed.

***

I'm trying to pause when they happen, these moments of beauty in my life.  They're often very simple, or happen at inconvenient times.  But they are there.  I hope you see them in your life too.  Life is beautiful.

Predictable Endings

I was putting things away in the kitchen when Dallin, who is eight years old, paused at the counter.

"Mom, how come you always know how books and movies are going to end?" he asked.

"What do you  mean, Dallin?" I asked.

"Like you always know that the good guy will win."  He talked about the protagonist in the book I'm reading aloud to him at bedtime, and how he had known all along he would overcome his obstacles. "It's always like that," he said.

"Are you saying that because you know that in real life, things don't always work out like we think?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said.  "I wish there were more books and movies like that."

We talked about how most people like to have happy endings, but that there are some books and movies without happy endings (which he plans to read/watch).

"Besides," I said.  "In the great story of humankind, we do know the ending already.  When all of this is over, we know that good will win over evil."

"I know," he said, and then he ran off to play.

Lest You Think...

I love reading back over my blog and remembering.  It's fun to see pictures of when my boys were younger, read funny quotes, remember Christmases.

But I was noticing that most of my posts are happy, happy.

Let it be known that I have my sads too.  I have my let-downs, my tantrums, my challenges.

Take today for example.  It was an ordinary day:

I had two kids home with Pinkeye.
One of those two kids refuses to do his business in the toilet and therefore...
One of those two kids ran around the house with a naked bum all day, a desperate tactic.
I have a big zit on my cheek.
I yelled at Caleb this morning.
I felt overwhelmed with upcoming Christmas preparations and activities.
One of the kids needed an emergency bedding wash.
There were already two loads of cold, unfolded laundry piled up.
Brandt and I had a power struggle over him only eating the m&ms in his trail mix.
I gave in.
The aforementioned nuts and raisins were scattered across the kitchen floor.
I got a minor injury on my finger.
I cooked Lime Coconut Curry Chicken over rice and went through the farce of serving it to my family when I knew only Mitch would eat it.
Today when I stepped on the scale it told me that I'm heavier than I've been since I was battling Brandt's baby weight.

But!  On the other hand:
The pink eye is retreating.
The naked-bum tactic really does help!
I apologized to Caleb and we're friends again.
I got our Christmas activities planned for the month of December, and filled our activity advent calendar.
I made a handmade gift for my mom (one for me too).
Bedding and laundry is folded and actually put away.
Brandt and I swept up together.
The rosy hues of the sunset were unreal, and I got to see it because Mitch called me and told me about it on his way home.
Caleb ate all his Coconut Lime Curry Chicken.
I worked out with my husband this morning.
I got to listen to some beautiful music today.
I got Dallin and Adam on the floor rolling with laughter.  They're ticklish.
I helped Adam with his homework.
I put out some beautiful lights around our nativity scene.
My new phone came in the mail.
The dishes are done and tonight I get to go to book club with some amazing, intelligent friends.

I think that when I look back at my life I'll remember mostly the good stuff.  But I think it is good to keep a real perspective too because without a few downs it would be hard to really appreciate the ups.