She Takes The Time

The World Around Me from tsechief on Vimeo.

Lately the weather has been nice enough for the girls and I to walk to school each afternoon to "collect" Nathan. This is my favorite part of where we live. I love spending the time with the girls as we walk to the school and the time with all three of them as we walk home. It feels like we can really talk rather than having shouted conversations across the car during our really quick drive home.

Because they do play for 1-2 hours on the playground after school, they do occasionally balk at the idea of walking "all the way home". Especially Nathan who usually ends up walking because I insist his sisters should be in the stroller or wagon and not a 5 1/2 year old. However, it is always short lived and once we start walking, talking and picking up treasures along the way home, everyone is happy. Often Hannah chooses to walk home too.

Today I took a little video of our walk to school. As everything has slowly begun to bloom, our walk time has extended a bit. Hannah truly takes the time to take it all in and must check out every single thing of beauty along the way. She reminds me to "stop and smell the roses" myself. We leave with plenty of time so that she can walk and stop and point things out and pick a wildflower here and there. The child has been dying to pick some tulips, but she finally seems to get which flowers she can pick and which ones she can't. I couldn't film the entire walk because once we get out of the neighborhood the traffic gets a bit crazy and we cross an entrance to a freeway. I fully intended to take pictures of the kids playing on the playground at school, but got busy pushing the swings and walking a certain someone around the playground while holding her two hands. No wonder they are all sleeping so soundly tonight.

Little Miss Sarah did throw her first public tantrum. I think she surprised everyone there even though on a scale of 1 to 10 it was about a 4 compared to some other tantrums we've witnessed (ahem). I removed her from the slide she was playing on because some boys were interested in using it and she was not having it. She would not let me hold her or comfort her at all. She laid down on the ground until another mom picked up her hands to walk her and she proceeded to lead her directly to the slide so she could finish. She only played for a minute or so and then was ready to walk on. I'm thankful another mom was willing to walk her around so that I could push Princess Hannah on the swing. Last night a very good friend gave Hannah an outgrown Snow White gown. She begged and begged to wear it on the walk today, but I talked her into the fairy dress under her jeans and shirt instead. I am so used to her being dressed this way that I don't even think about it until I see the knowing smiles as we pass other moms.

So Daddy, we had another good day, give or take a moment or two. We miss you and keep counting the nights we have left to see you...