momma lessons

i had a vision.
this fun, simple, little vision for my family for halloween.

...and can i say the electric hope that runs through my veins upon typing or even saying, my family, is glittery magic of a (long wished for) dream fulfilled?

my mom is simply divine. she worked her bee-hind off this week making sure Sookie's costume was just right. i like putting stuff together from various places, making changes, switching it up, and turning it into a costume.

we had three halloween parties yesterday. we had a whimsical theme. rory was on board as well. my excitement was bursting. we transformed sookie's bouncy red curls to green. the time came to put on her key pieces of her costume.

nope.
she wanted nothing to do with it.
we are talking kicking, screaming, crying.
flat out refusing.

we gave up.
it wasn't worth it.

here is the thing.
i can't be mad.
or even justify frustration.
it is funny.
hilarious even.

i can say to her:
remember that halloween when you were two and momma and glamma put a lot of heart into your costume? then the day came to wear it and you decided you didn't want to? no matter what we offered, you weren't interested?

one of the biggest lessons in my child life specialist training (college, working at a preschool, volunteering in the hospital, etc) was that even when you throw yourself into preparing for something, doesn't mean it will go according to plan. (i always say plan is 4 letter word in our house.) even when you do all your homework, that doesn't mean the step of events will go smoothly. little people are distinctively unique; there is not a solution that is one size fits all...for anything! whether it be preparing a four year old for an IV, talking a 7 year old through a spinal tap, or something as trivial as getting your spunky two year old into a silly halloween costume. please know i realize the immense emotional landscape and developmental levels between these three different scenarios, but it all does relate in that motherhood is a lot like child life specialist land wherein you must ALWAYS be ready to let go of what you had planned & go with the flow, no matter how much preparation you put into it.

i know how superficial it is to even bat an eyelash over this. i know i'm blessed beyond all reason to even be a momma, and the fact i am even allowed the luxury to "stress" over something so ridiculous, is a true gift. 

here's to being grateful for life's little frustrations, because they are the pathways to wake up calls and grounding you when you start to venture from how crucial your own little rainbow is.