Moments that get me through

Praise the Lord for little sweet moments we have in our day-to-day lives as moms!  They are so often like a cool glass of water on a blistering summer day--just what you needed.  Night before last as I was putting Benjamin to sleep, the two of us were alone in his bedroom.  The room was very dark except for the glow of a nightlight, but we could still see eachother's faces quite clearly despite how dimly lit the room was.  The sound machine was set on "wind", and its whirring, low hum filled the small space, keeping us from hearing much of Stan give Olivia a bath on the other side of his bedroom wall in the hall bath.  I had finished nursing Benjamin, and I stood up with him to burp him as I often do.  Many times this becomes a wrestling match--him writhing in my arms as he tries to work out a burp.  But not tonight.  He just laid his head on my shoulder and talked to me softly, mostly in mmmmmmm, mmmm, mmmmms, and as it continued, he said things like, "gerrrrr, wahyeeeh, buhbuhbuh..."  By this time I had adjusted my hold of him so that I was cradling him with his head resting in the crook of my left arm.  We both leaned in to one another and just breathed, in and out, in and out, in and out, sharing warm breaths with one another.  He smiled and softly said, "mamamama," and I whispered, "I love you Benjamin," and he smiled and started giggling.  And I knew I shouldn't get him overly excited since I was trying to put him to sleep, but I couldn't help it; he was inviting me to play.  So as I cradled him in my arms I started swinging him high in the air, left and right and left and right, and we both giggled and smiled in the shadowy, glowy room that had become like a little cocoon of love for the two of us in those precious moments before bedtime.