Beautiful Sunny Day

I was changing out the laundry this morning and ran across a rather large rock that Carter had stashed in one of her pockets. As I walked out of the laundry room I couldn't help but think about how that rock in the washer was a lot like the rock I woke up with in the pit of my stomach. Nate's absence was weighing heavy and stretched out in front of me like a marathon yet to be run, a desert waiting to be crossed. Less than 24 hours under your belt doesn't feel like much of an accomplishment! As I opened the blinds in my kitchen to another gray and rainy day I felt like caving into the desire pulling me towards apathy and depression...but then, I heard this little voice like an angel. She wasn't talking to anyone in particular, just chattering on about this and that like she tends to do. It was just what I needed. It sent me into another round of the "glad game" where I was prompted to thank God for this beautiful little person in my life. For her innocence and her energetic nature. I love the fact that she woke me up this morning with a kiss (yes I'm a weeny and let her sleep with me when Nate is gone). She sat straight up in bed and said, "It's a Sunny day! It's a beautiful sunny day mommy!" I'm actually not sure where she got this because let me tell you the weather in Whidbey today was anything but sunny. But Carter is teaching me that beauty is found in the eye of the beholder, and thanks to my little angel it was a Beautiful Sunny Day indeed.

Today was Carter's last day of Pre-school. I haven't had a chance to blog about it yet, but she has been attending for about 4 weeks now. It was a wonderful opportunity that was dropped in our lap by some of our friends (thanks Kristyn)! They have a program here that is normally not "open" to the public. Spots are filled by children who "need" to be in the school for various reasons. They were a little short this session and needed a couple of happy little 2 year old girls to attend...guess who fit the bill? That's right, my little sunshine girl. She has been loving attending twice a week for two hours. I have been enjoying a little time to grocery shop and run errands! Here is Carter on her first day of "school":

She has loved all of the friends that she has made and I have been so impressed with all of her wonderful teachers. They said she dove right in memorizing songs, participating whole heartedly in all the activities and circle time. I was one very proud momma! Here she is painting tire tracks with her good friend Lydia:

For the last month or so Carter has been fairly obsessed with the female anatomy. She frequently asks women, "Do you have boobs?" As you can imagine this is a little on the embarrassing side. She witnessed one of my friends breastfeeding her baby and I think that's what kicked it off. One night when Nate was getting her ready for bed he called me into her room. I wasn't sure what to think when I walked in to find her pretending to breast feed one of her baby dolls! I'm happy to see that she chose to feed this baby with a bottle!

Here she is hanging out with a group of her friends from class:

I love this sweet little face:

This opportunity has been a great experience on so many levels and today was a big day, being that it was the last one! It was quite rainy as I left the house with little red riding hood in tow:

When we arrived she insisted upon holding the "wings" on her back pack like daddy does! That is exactly what she said. I wasn't quite sure what that meant but after watching her for a moment I think it translates into this:

Here's a little glimpse into what it's like to converse with Carter:

Carter hanging out in front of her "hook":

This is how all the cool kids show off their art work:

Carter and one of her sweet teachers Ms. Heidi, aka Grammy (Joan). I could not get over how much they reminded me of each other! The similarities were amazing!

To commemorate this momentous day I treated Carter to her choice for lunch. Is there a kid out there who wouldn't request the golden arches? I know that "Old MacDonald's" as she likes to call it was the obvious choice!

I am so proud of Carter and all her little accomplishments. She is such a wonderful little person, I like her so much! I know that this post is seemingly never ending (which is fitting because this day felt like it might go on forever) but, I wanted to share a couple of other Carter moments. Tonight when I was cleaning up after dinner I caught Carter doing a little cleaning up of her own:

And last but not least this is completely random, but lately I have just been at a loss as to what to do with Carter's hair! It seems like it is just flying out of control half the time...I like control so this is an issue for me. Tonight after her bath she did something she normally would refuse, she let me blow dry her hair. I just had to share because I think the solution to our hair problems is a simple one--it's called a blowdrier!

I realize that my daughters hair is probably of very little concern to anyone but me, but, thanks for humoring me. I'm thankful to have her golden locks, funny comments and sweet kisses to help me keep my mind off of missing her daddy. He's always on my mind though, and as much as I miss him I find myself even being thankful for that. I'm thankful that I have someone that I love so much that my heart aches when he is gone. I've always wanted to love and be loved like that. I'm so thankful that God has given me my hearts desire.