Our Beautiful Life: Little Helper

The busy-ness of the season is upon us....heck, the busy-ness of LIFE is my everyday. Unfortunately that leaves little time for blogging. A shame, really, because I often look back at posts that I've written - memories typed in my own words. Writing it all down when it first happens, and then reading back later, is so much different than just looking back at pictures. The photos capture the moments, but the words bring the memory flooding back like it just happened. Feelings and emotions captured, the little details that you'd once forgotten about. Blogging has given me a space to write down our story, and I've missed being able to do that lately.

Which is why I couldn't let this weekend pass without recording a seemingly small moment....an event that lasted no longer than half an hour. But one that left me with such joy that I want to always remember it. So I'll write it down.

My sweet little helper.

I had been hoping to do some baking this weekend. Armed with Mark's grandma's snickerdoodle recipe, my KitchenAid mixer, an apron for me and one for the little one, and a last minute run for some parchment paper, we were ready. Natalie has been really into helping in the kitchen lately. She loves to dump and pour and stir, and when I ask her if she wants to help, she responds with "Yay! MEEEE!!! Help!" and runs to the kitchen. She pushes one of the kitchen chairs over to the counter and grunts and groans and hoists herself up. When she's finally up there, she'll proclaim "Ready!" and wait for her job. I made the cookie dough ahead of time and chilled it, so we were ready to make the dough into balls and roll it in the cinnamon and sugar. As I rolled each ball and handed it to her, she carefully rolled it around to get it coated, then piled them all up in the middle of the cookie sheet. :) She talked and jabbered the whole time, and looked so darn proud of herself after each cookie. She imitated me rolling the cookie dough. Then she discovered that the cinnamon and sugar tasted sweet and couldn't stop licking her little fingers.

It suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks - we are here already?! I have a daughter who can help me bake cookies!? She isn't a baby anymore....she's this little person who helps in the kitchen, and says "Goodnight Mommy" and kisses me in the morning and sings in the car with the radio. She colors in coloring books and makes funny faces and helps put ornaments on the tree. And she says "thank you" when I give her dessert after dinner and she puts her head on my shoulder and rubs my back when I pick her up from daycare at the end of the day. She looks for her Daddy when she gets up in the morning and can't go anywhere without a babydoll and likes to watch Sesame Street. All of a sudden, I'm realizing that she is almost two years old and can do all of these wonderful things. Such a little person she is becoming!