O how she makes me smile (and cry)!

Since turning 2; Ceilidh will go through periods of wonderful behavior and then periods of challenging behavior. Even during her challenging days, she isn't that bad; it just seems to go from one thing to the next without any breaks. I can let myself get pretty discouraged some days with challenging discipline days, losing my patience, feeling inadequate around all these incredibly smart and "successful" women/students, etc. On these days, I have to remind myself that Andrew and I have committed ourselves to investing daily in our children's lives to make Christ attractive and accessible. (RMC 2003, for you Clendenin fans! ha) It is nice to have days where you feel like God is honoring this desire of ours. Today was one of those days!

Ceilidh succeeded in making me cry tears of joy multiple times today. Her Sunday School class is using their offering to buy books in Swahili for an orphanage in Tanzania. Even the fact that they are buying books with this money makes me want to cry now. God is so intricately involved in her life even now, that he would allow her to "share" her love of books with these children. So, this morning she got her little change purse ready and literally clung to it all the way to church. She told Aunt Caitlin in the car, that she was going to give her money to Jesus in her classroom. (First time I cried) I didn't even get her completely in the classroom door, before she is literally shoving her change into Ms. Chantel's hands. Chantel didn't even know what she was doing until I told her she was giving her offering. I couldn't stop watching her drop each coin into the can with the biggest smile I have ever seen on her face. (Second time I cried) Yes I am 38 weeks pregnant, yes I am emotional anyway; but this was truly one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. She knew exactly what she was doing; and she was excited to be giving it to Jesus.

Then tonight while I am reading her books and rocking, she whispers to me, "Mommy, I just want you to be happy. I just want Daddy to be happy." (Cry again for the third time) She was smiling and genuinely telling me that me being happy made her happy. Obviously I tell her we are very happy and she makes us the happiest parents in the world. Where does she come up with this stuff! Thank you Lord, that even though we might have some tedious days; and I fail miserably at being a wife and mother at times, you are continuously faithful to me and my family!