Tuesday, January 04, 2011

Blackberry Time

As her teacher walks down the sidewalk, Suzi looks at me walking towards her and a huge smile spreads across her face.  She cuddles against her teacher, perhaps telling her goodbye, perhaps shielding her face from the wind, then she leans into my arms and I get the same snuggle.

As I put her in the car, she tells me about her morning at preschool, about the day that the teacher said Suzi enjoyed immensely.  I asked her if she had fun and she shakes her head yes and smiles. 

We pull out onto the road and a good beat comes on the radio, a beat from the 60's or 70's, one that just forces your body start keeping time.  "Let's boogie!," I tell Suzi.  "No!," she tells me.  But as I start waving my arm in my odd dancing with no rhythm kind of way, she starts bobbing up and down in her carseat too.  We're two of a kind, Suzi and I. 

We come upstairs and I unpack her backpack.  She picks up her snack cup, the one I sent with fresh blackberries for her snacktime today and she tells me she wants more "backberry."  I think, as I do hundreds of times a day, how incredibly cute and little she is.  I think her size surprises me so often because not only is she way smaller for her age than her siblings, but her personality far outsizes that little body.  I tell her fine, she can have more blackberries, but first she has to let me take a picture of her.


She runs with her snack cup and puts it up against wall and pretends to be listening. 

I take a few pictures and she grows a little impatient with me.


"Put the cup down and let me get a picture of how cute you look, okay?  Then I promise I'll get you the blackberries."  She puts the cup behind her and balances it between her bottom and the wall.  She thinks this is HILARIOUS.



"One smile without the cup, please?"



Good enough.  She dances into the kitchen and stops in front of the fridge, cup in hand.  "Right here!' she happily instructs me.  I get the blackberries washed and refill her cup.  I fix her a little plate of avocado chunks and cheese cubes with a side of yogurt.  She happily sits and eats only the blackberries and yogurt.

I happily sit and watch her and marvel at how lucky I am to have her in my life.

No comments: