It might not look like a great moment to you, but this is one of my favorite parts of the week: Friday mornings with E. Don't get me wrong. I love my time with Chad and G during the week, too, but there is something about Friday mornings that I look forward to as each other day of the week passes.
Friday mornings, after E and I drop G off at the bus stop early in the morning, we come home in our PJs and pour ourselves a couple of bowls of our favorite cereals. For me, it's often Cocoa Krispies. For E, lately, it's often Honeycomb. (On occasion, she'll even ask before she goes to bed if she can have it in the morning.) We sit down in the quiet and calm house, before the sun rises, with no deadlines, no rushing, no particular plan for the day (if we're lucky). We sit and we talk. We talk about what we want to do over the weekend, what E did during the school week, what we'll play with when we're done eating, what the animals are thinking, what her teachers say at school...just a random assortment of things that cross the mind of a three- (almost four-) year-old.
Breakfast is always followed with a sweet little voice asking her mama, "Will you play with me?" to which I always respond, "Of course, Sweetie." We go into her room, shut the door to keep the dogs (and the monsters) out, and sit on her floor and play. Before Christmas, it was with Little People. After Christmas, it's been all about her new doll house. We arrange the people and furniture—over and over again—and have imaginary conversations between all of them. E disciplines them for being bad, puts them in time-out and finds little toy animals to keep them company. I do whatever it is that E thinks would be nice at the time. This is E's time: She's in charge. She tells me what to do with the people, says, "Good job, Mama," and determines the agenda for play time. I have a feeling it's pretty special to her, because on the rare Friday that we don't get that play time, she gets rather upset and cranky. It's a little piece of her week when she can play the adult, and I am happy to play along.
After play time, it's usually time for me to shower, then to get both of us ready, fix lunch (yes, by that time, it's usually about 11 a.m.!) and plan the couple of hours that remain before it's time to pick up G from school. (I always pick him up on Fridays...something I think he looks forward to each week.) There's usually a trip to Target involved, as well as sorting laundry and calling Daddy for an update on his day. Sometimes we plan lunch with him for a special treat (almost always to Chick-fil-A near his work). In warmer months, we often go to the park. After we pick up G, it's time for snacks, a short TV break and naps/quiet time. Mommy gets an hour and a half or so of work in, and Daddy gets home early.
Anyway, Fridays with my little girl are pretty special to me. Pretty soon (less than two years, in fact), she'll be in kindergarten on Fridays, and these special she-and-me times will be history. That's why I wanted to write down what makes them special to me now, before they're only a fading memory. This will definitely be a page in her scrapbook...someday. (I love that this blog lets me record the memory now, whether I have time to scrapbook the memory or not.)
There have been times lately when I have considered adding a fifth official day to my workweek. In the past month or two, I have been too busy to get everything done in four days, even when I add the evenings. But I have resisted. I am not ready to give up my day with my girl. She's at an age when I can't get enough time with her. She's growing up quickly, and I am constantly reminded how ridiculously fast her "little" years are passing before me. (Besides, my workload could turn tomorrow.)
So for now, I'll stay up until midnight or 2 a.m. on occasion in order to protect my Fridays with my girl. Because breakfast with my crazy-haired girl, playtime at the doll house and goofy conversations are just too good to pass up.