He DELIGHTS in me!

Some would call my daughter strong-willed. I prefer to call Amirah spirited! Today was a beautiful day for Mommy and Amirah. She has been so happy and energetic. As I was playing with her today I pointed at her and she began giggling. She fell to her bottom and then on her back in anticipation of being tickled.

Amirah, my beautiful princess, makes me so happy. I delight in each new skill she learns. I love her passion for life. As we played I was reminded that God feels the way about me. He is delighted when I learn something new. He loves it when I am passionate about the people in my life. He DELIGHTS in me.

delight- (noun)- a high degree of pleasure and enjoyment; joy; rapture

Time

Time. It's such a precious resource and yet I use it so wastefully. Yes, there are moments when I know I'm using my time to make a difference-- when I take the time to call someone who's had a rough day, when I purposely smile at a stranger that looks sad, when I stop what I'm doing on the computer to chase Amirah around the living room and let her giggles fill my soul. I don't do it enough though. I also use precious time to mindlessly google things. I use precious time to dwell on how someone offended me. I use precious time to watch TV, even when it's not that interesting.

Two days ago a friend of mine lost her life in a car accident, leaving behind a husband and three beautiful daughters. I try to imagine what life would have been like for Dad and his three girls if we had lost our mom, and I just can't do it. She didn't know it would be her last day. Never even entertained the possibility.

Today when I layed Amirah down for her nap she cried and cried. I listened to it for a few minutes and it didn't sound like she was settling. I went up to her room and scooped her up from her crib and began rocking her. Within minutes she was fast asleep. I breathed her in. She smelled a little like the bananas she had for breakfast and a bit like the formula she had spilled on her pajamas, but you know what? It was perfect! She smelled like life. Like she had been living. Sometimes when I'm experiencing a beautiful moment like the one where my baby girl falls asleep in my arms, I purposely stop and breathe in the moment, and like Mary I treasure it in my heart. Life is bound to get tough and I may need that beautiful moment to get me through a rough patch.

My time will not be wasted today! It's just too precious!

lots of random thoughts tonight

• loved hanging out with my sisters. we don't do it enough and i love it when i do. they get me. no pretenses. just me. plus, we are so funny when we are together!
• my eyes have been getting "gooky" at night. not sure why. need to look into that.
• did we water the christmas tree tonight? or the night before? need to look into that, too.
• i really need to go to bed. do you think ysmaille meant it when he said he would let me sleep in and take the baby tomorrow morning? i really hope so.