My gift

This mother's day has reminded me why I do what I do. Why I labored for hours on end to deliver 4 beautiful babies into the world. Why I kiss invisible booboos and bandage the ones I can see. Why I wake up when I hear a coughing fit coming from across the house. Why I put up with the whining, the temper tantrums, the attitude.

Tonight I tucked Princess #2 back into bed after waking her at 9pm to take a dose of ibuprofen. She had been battling a fever all day and it had spiked during her earlier sleep. After rubbing her back and cooling her forehead with a damp washcloth, she asked me in her sweet voice if I would lay in bed with her for a little bit. Promising to do so, I tucked her in and laid my head down on her pillow. In a reprimanding voice she instructed me to lay my whole body in her bed. So I climbed in next to her tiny frame. I brushed her messy hair out of her face and voiced "precious princess" under my breath. And that's when her small arms wrapped around my waist and she whispered back "precious mommy".

It doesn't get any better than that.