My Favorite Time of Day

I should point out that I am doing this exercise in blogging about my favorite things partly as a way to cultivate gratitude. I feel like much of my mindset its plagued by worry and anger at things not going the way I want them to. Being a control freak sort of leads to that. Anyway, Calvin is not napping right now, even though I really want him to so that he will be rested for a trip out to the in-laws' this evening. It seems like the perfect time to write about my favorite time of day with my boys.

Neither of my boys were cuddlers as babies. They fought sleep and had to be bounced and jiggled and swayed. They hated rocking chairs. But as they have gotten a bit older, they have certainly made up for that. We don't have a family bed (at least not past four or five months of age), but we do allow the boys to come into our room when they wake up in the morning. There is nothing I like better than being awakened by the sound of Calvin's feet running down the hall and his voice saying "It's light outside" as he carefully opens our door. If Hobbes hasn't already woken up and called out for us, he usually joins us pretty soon after. What follows is the highlight of my day. A short time of cuddles and kisses and hugs all around, little hands reaching up to our cheeks and saying "Mama" and "Dada," my boys hugging each other good morning, a few minutes of sweetness and peace before the day begins. And sometimes there is a little wrestling thrown in. They are boys, after all. No matter what sort of tantrums, arguments, missed naps, or unmet expectations follow, the days always come back around to this. Morning cuddlefest. One of my favorite things.