Surf 'n Turf

If you've ever been to Prince Edward Island in the summer, you'll understand why I haven't been writing much lately. The last week has been absolutely beautiful, sunny and 28 degrees most days. That means one thing in our house - The Beach. So we've been beach bums for the last little while, enjoying the sun, sand and the surf.

On the not so great beach days, I've been cleaning, streamlining, throwing out anything remotely useless. It's all getting turfed. I went through Madeline's room a week ago with two garbage bags and a big Rubbermaid container. I filled them all. For some reason, she holds on to junky stuff and shoves it into the drawers under her bed. Stuff like pen lids and pieces of cut up paper, markers that have dried up, candy wrappers, Barbie doll heads and broken dollar store toys. And then there's the clothes. A typical day starts with me asking: "Maddie, are you dressed?"

Silence.

"Maddie? You OK hon?"

Maddie: *exasperated sigh, then whining* "I don't have anything to wear!!"

Some days, it's just a matter of going up to her room, issuing a stern warning and putting the clothes in front of her. Other days, she's already sitting on the floor, scowling at her dresser, rejecting every article of clothing I suggest. "I don't. have. anything!" she growls. Funny. I can never get the drawers open for all the clothing shoved inside.

So one day I started pulling out her drawers and tossing things into piles. I would simply hold up something and ask "Like it?" or "Does it fit?" Any hesitation on her part meant that the item in question was turfed into a bag, either to be donated or thrown out. No going back. After getting a large garbage bag full of clothing to be donated, a large garbage bag full of junk, and a Rubbermaid tote filled with books, her room finally looks neat. Her drawers (mysteriously) are still filled with clothes that she will actually wear, and she has room in the drawers under her bed now for other things that I will likely toss out some day.

Connor's room and the TV room have also received similar treatment. The result is a much cleaner, less cluttered looking house. I like it. It's so much easier to relax on the beach when you don't have to worry about cleaning a messy house when you get back. The only thing to clean is the sand, but that's another post for another day. Today we're off to the beach!

Madeline

My daughter, Madeline, tiptoed into our room this morning as the sun was just peeking over the horizon. Giddy with delight, she whispered loudly, "Mommy! I'm eight!"
Smiling, I stared for an instant at this person who had once lived in my body. How beautiful she is, with her stunning blue eyes, long dark hair and porcelain skin. I was instantly reminded of the morning that she was born.
After a merciful two hours of labor, my wailing baby entered the world at a mere 6 lbs. 14 oz. I remember the doctor asking what name I had chosen for a girl. "Madeline" I had whispered, exhausted. I was unable to believe that I had the daughter I had so desperately wished for. "Well hello, Miss Madeline!" he said to her as he cleaned her up. "She's a dainty little lady!" he commented later as the nurse placed her on my chest.
After she was was safely in my arms, I gazed in awe at her tiny fingers and toes. A dainty little lady indeed! My heart was bursting with joy. I had a daughter!!
"Mommy! It's my birthday!" She whispered again, her eyes sparkling with excitement, returning my thoughts back to the present moment. I hugged her close to me. "Happy Birthday Sweetie!" I said into her hair. Connor, who had arrived in our bed only moments before Madeline did, was nestled between Levi and I. Poking his head up from his little nest of pillows, he said in his politest, grown up two year old voice, "Happy-day Maddie!" Giggling, she thanked him with a hug.
I want to savour every moment of her girlhood. Her contagious giggle could melt even the coldest of hearts, and her compassion for other people shows a maturity beyond her eight years. She is still very much a little girl though, and loves wearing pretty skirts to school, playing dress up with my shoes, and wants to decorate her room in pastel pinks and purples. I know that someday I will miss the days of pony-tails, barbie dolls and hysterical giggling over the word underwear. Until then, however, I will embrace the joys and challenges of parenting an eight year old girl. I will enjoy the fleeting years of her childhood with her. Just as she is learning from me, I am learning from her - about life, love, and family.