11 August 2011, by Jaime Teo
My Aw…. Moment
It is my second favourite time of the day — putting Renee to bed. (My favourite time of the day is when Renee wakes up in the morning and I watch her sleepy face slowly light up with a smile when she sees me =D).
I like feeling her head on my shoulder when she is tired and ready to sleep. It is such a difference from the squirmy girl I have to fight to hold in my arms during the day.
I like feeling her arms around my neck because it makes me feel like I am Mama Koala with her Baby Koala.
I like feeling her legs brush against my lower body because it shows how much she has grown. I still marvel at how this little girl could have come from me.
I like carrying her for a while before putting her in bed, and we usually have a before-bed conversation… It’s a variation of this:
“Renee, you want to listen to the Little Children song?”
“Aun” (That’s her way of saying Want.)
“Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world, Red and yellow, black and white, They
are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world… Did you like that? “
“Ike” (That’s her way of saying Like.)
“You want another song?”
“Aun” .
And we go on with this conversation for a few more songs before I put her in bed and pat her to sleep.
A few weeks ago after a particularly long day at work, I felt like I should talk to her and explain the change in our daily routine to her. So after our usual prayer and song bedtime routine, I held her to me a little longer than usual to talk to her .
“Renee, Mommy was at work for a long time today…. Mommy and Papa just opened a cupcake shop that’s why we are so busy these days. It’s not going to be like this all the time ok? Once things settle down a little, we will be able to spend more time with you.”
Her head was on my shoulder but it felt to me like she was more still than her usual self.
“You know, Mommy misses you very much when she’s at work. Mommy is thinking of you all the time even though she is not at home with you. Mommy loves you, you know?”
At that, she abruptly lifted up her head and then put both arms around my neck to give me a brief but fierce hug.
Renee is not by nature a very affectionate girl. It appears to me at times that she doesn’t have the attention span to hold on to a hug :p The very fact that she chose this moment to give me a hug made me feel like she understood everything I said. That wordless reply was also possibly the best reply she could have given.
With a big smile on my face and in my heart, I returned her hug and asked,
“Who loves Renee?”
“Mama. Papa”
That was my Aw… moment.
Posted on : August 11, 2011
Filed under : New Mums & Dads
6 Comments
Lings
October 12th, 2011 at 7:30 am
Awww… it’s so sweet.. kids and moms do share this special bond dont they.. <3
Jayy
September 2nd, 2011 at 3:15 pm
I’m not a mother myself, yet anyway. Hahaha. But while reading this I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. Very touched. 🙂
Madeline
August 16th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
That was really ‘aw-worthy’! She’s so sweet 🙂
k
August 16th, 2011 at 3:43 pm
beautiful.
Hui Min
August 16th, 2011 at 2:07 pm
That sure is SUPER sweet! 🙂
Susan
August 16th, 2011 at 5:20 am
Awww… They may be young but they sure understand a lot more than we think!