good mornings

A few months ago, I explained this gist of this article to Oliver. I told him that I'm going to make time to connect with him every morning, so that his brain can wake up peacefully. I asked him what he would like to do if we had a few minutes to spend together and he said, "play Legos."

The next morning I went in his room, flipped on the light, and gathered his clothes. I laid in his bed and asked Siri to set a timer for 5 minutes. We snuggled for a minute and then got up and played Legos until the alarm sounded. He liked what I built. :) It was freaking magical. He got dressed on his own and went downstairs. I didn't have to ask him more than once to get his shoes, jacket, backpack, etc. He told me twice that he liked connecting with me. He let the dog out. He poured his own milk.

I didn't expect this miracle to repeat itself daily, and honestly I haven't been the best at reserving a set amount of time with him, but it has made an impact. This school year has thrown some interesting challenges at us, and I really think that getting down on his level - literally and figuratively, can only help us navigate what we'll face in the years to come.

As the new year begins, I will continue to make time for his little soul. My favorite quote from the article says, "...fill your child’s cup before the day starts, and reconnect after the separation of the night." They're only this age once!

second grader