Sunshine On A Cloudy Day

Today, I had to think a lot of this young family, whose daughter just died a few days ago (it's been one of those blogger things going around that you just find out about). They had a little 19-month old girl, blue eyes, blond hair, little piggy tails. She died from a drowning accident, after fighting for her life for a week. It just breaks my heart that someone has to go through something this hard. If I try to envision my little Sophia laying in a hospital bed, sick like that, and then dying on me...all I can do is bawl, and stop thinking that stuff right away, because it's unbearable. And it's not even a reality (at least right now). But for someone it is. And it makes me incredibly sad for them. It seems like one of the biggest wrongs in the world - something that just shouldn't be. That parents have to bury their children. And yet, it happens all the time.

The good that comes from such sadness? It reminds me how precious our time here on earth truly is. It reminds me that each minute we have with our loved ones is a gift, not a given. Of course, we all basically know that, but it feels to me that we need those sad, early departure to help us remember.

So, I want to remember. And live it up. What does it matter that my bladder doesn't hold up anymore. Who cares that I now pee my pants each time I sneeze? (Oh yeah, did I tell you how I was at the store the other day, and I had to sneeze and I very literally peed my pants - and not just a bit. It was super embarrassing, and I'm just sharing this here so you all can feel incredibly blessed and happy about life. Unless you regularly pee yourself, too...). I have all the wonderful things in life that really mean anything. I've got my best friend with me, and I have my daughter with me - alive, healthy. Yipee!

And I figured since it's so wonderful to have our little Sophia with us, it's time for a few updates on her. First of all I should report on her potty adventures. The other day she decided that she wanted to 'go potty' like mom and dad. She went successfully a few times, and then didn't want to sit on the potty anymore. I didn't want to push her, so I just waited for the next time she wanted to go and then figured maybe rewarding her would create some positive reenforcement. When she went again, I gave her a chocolate chip. Since that one singular chocolate chip, she's been overeager and happy to go to the potty any time we ask. Hmmmphhh...I didn't envision the condition to take place that quickly. Since it also lead to her just sitting on the potty and demanding chocolate without the desired output, the chocolate is now only given when visible output is produced. She's still loving to go, so...hopefully potty training can be pursued in earnestness not too far in the future. We're still keeping it low-key and pressure-free for now.

The other exciting news is that once Sophia mastered her numbers from 1-9 she seemed to be interested in letters. We started teaching her the letters from her name, and then added Mama, Papa, Oma and Opa to the mix (who all have pretty much the same letters). She has been able to successfully sound out the words, and knows all the sounds of the letters from these words, and her name. However, after doing this 3-4 times she lost interest and didn't want to do it again. In order to not push the poor kid, we've done no writing/reading since. I figure when she's interested and ready again, we'll know. But I'm always impressed with her inquisitive nature and ability to remember things.

Speaking of remembering, I realize that Sophia truly is a people lover. In her baby blessing she was told that she'd have a special love for people, and that her love for others would help them feel Heavenly Father's love for them. I really see this already. She just loves people. I'm always amazed at how well she remembers names and people. Today she talked about the husband of one of my friends. She hasn't seen those people in over a month. She has talked about her one aunt in Germany, and her kids, and said all their names. And I have no clue where it's coming from. It's not like we talk about them all the time (sorry guys!). When we pray, she often chirps in saying "Danke" and then adding a person. So, we may hear list of 'Thank you Grandma, thank you grandpa, thank you aunt Meike, thank you Julia, etc." She knows them all. She loves them all. She recognizes them when she sees them. And I just know that she truly has a special gift for loving others. It makes me glad. Mainly because it means she won't be like me. Yeah!

She is also still our sweet little girl, usually happy, usually singing, happy to dance, happy to kiss and cuddle and hug. I love it. And she's still schlepping around all her stuffed animals for whatever goes on. Today Sophia sat at the piano playing, and she insisted that I hoist her rocking horse on the piano chair as well. Hehehe.

I love you Sophia! Thanks for all the happiness you bring into the world. I'm so glad we have you with us!