Just when I’m left wondering why it’s so damn hard sometimes, we have a blissful morning. No arguments, no tears; only laughter, smiles and the air of doing what I request of her to do to get us out the door on time. These are times I cherish. This is the daughter I love to see and experience. The silly one. The cheerful one. The loving one.

We park in front of the school and she asks if she can walk in by herself. I let her know she is a big girl and of course she can. She is elated. As I watch her walk off with her Frozen backpack on her back, her purple polka-dotted lunch box in one hand, and her bag of “100 counted things” in the other, she turns around and waves to me. A huge grin on her face. Turning back again towards class I watch her skip off all the way towards her friends ready to begin her day. ❤️