TBT

Time to get up, the son is shining 


You know that feeling… The feeling you get when someone is staring at you while you sleep? I get that feeling almost every morning.  It doesn’t startle me but I am very aware of it. I open my eyes and there is Owen quietly staring with his blankie and a bear in hand. “Hi Mom!” he says. “Hi Owen.  Good morning”, I say. Then I look at my phone to see what time it is, and it’s 5am… Oh my it’s 5 am. “Time to get up!” says Owen.  Owen, my love it is only 5am, would you like to crawl into bed with me? Let’s sleep a little longer.”  Owen assures me it’s morning and tells me that the sun is out. “Look the sun is shining through your curtains” I peek behind the curtains… Honey, that is the street lamp, it’s 5am. I look over at Owen and he has a big smile across his face. He could care less that it is 5am; he doesn’t know what 5am means.  All he knows is that he’s up and he’s happy and he’s ready to play.  “Ok, I’ll get up”, I wink back.

We go downstairs.   I make myself a coffee and get Owen some milk.  I get down on the floor beside him as he plays with his toys and try to look as enthusiastic as he does while he tells me about robots and what they can do to buildings. We play a little longer, and then I make breakfast.  Then we build a fort in the living room, play with trains, and then it is just about time for us to get ready for school. I look at the clock and tell Owen that I will let him watch a show on TV while I run upstairs to get myself ready. I scoot upstairs to do my hair, make-up and throw on some clothes. I then head downstairs to get Owen dressed and ready for school, and what do I find?  He is fast asleep on the couch.  I smile, and let him sleep a little longer before getting him ready for school.

Slowly, I wake Owen.  Eyes blinking open, he greets me with, “Hi Mom”.  “Hi Owen,” I smile back. “Time to get up, the sun is shining”

Throw back Thursday-- One of my favourite posts

Days to Remember...

Owen was just about two when Sean and I went our separate ways. I was working at Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada and made the decision to go back to school. That September, when school started for the both of us, it was the worst September of my life.

Every day was a struggle. Owen had a very hard time adjusting and so did I. Bracing for a good-bye, he would have his arms stretched up to me, crying.  Tears streaming down his face,  I would kiss him, hug him, and tell him I would be back as soon as Mommy was finished class.

As brave as all that was, I would leave home every morning in tears, having to fix my make up in the car before heading to class. I don’t know how I made it through that first year. It must have been the people around me, supporting me, and pushing me forward. I reminded myself that I was going back to school for the better good of myself and my son. I carried on.

A year has passed but Owen still has a tough time in the morning when I drop him off at daycare-- not all days are bad, but still, about 40% of the time it will be a challenge getting him out the door.  We may leave with a few tears, but he is always happy when I pick him up at the end of the day. I keep that in mind.

Yesterday was different, yesterday was a day I always want to remember. As I was getting Owen out of the car Owen shouted “Vanessa is going to be here!” “ Oh how nice! I said back to him. “Yesterday you two were playing ‘tag’ in the school yard, looked like you two were having a great time!” I said. “Yup!”, he said.  Then we walked inside. I took off his coat, hat, and mitts, and gave him a hug and kiss good bye. I could see Vanessa sitting at the table having her morning snack so I said good morning to her, too, and pointed Owen in her direction. Owen waved good bye to me and stood in front of the door with his blankie, like he always does. I stood there for awhile and I am so happy that I did.

 I watched Vanessa as she got up from her chair with her cereal bowl and she walked towards the kitchen to hand her bowl to the teacher. Then she came back towards Owen, bent her knees so that he would look into her eyes, and she smiled. Without saying a word she put out her hand to take his and they walked hand in hand towards the play area.

Tears filling into my eyes “that was so nice” I said out loud. I started walking towards the exit, waving goodbye to other teachers on my way out. And as I drove home, I thought about Vanessa and what a little angel she was. I thought back to this past fall when I would drop off Owen and he would cry, Vanessa would come up and give Owen a hug and I would hear the teacher say “give Owen some space” as I was leaving. Every single day this darling little Vanessa has been the first to come over to Owen and give him a hug, or wait patiently in front of him, standing still, until he is calm, and ready to play.

When I arrived back at daycare to pick up my little Owen, Owen ran up to me yelling ”Momm!!” I gave Owen a hug and a kiss, then I walked over to Vanessa and gave her a hug. What I wanted to say right there was “Thank you for looking after my son. You have no idea what it means to me to know that he has you to comfort him.” But instead, I said “Thank you for being such a great friend to Owen.” No words were returned, but a big smile on Vanessa’s face. That was all that I needed. I smiled back. J