If You're Happy and You Know It...

As a parent, the smallest little milestones in your child's life are earth-shattering. And nothing makes you more proud than watching your little mini-me learn something new or try something they haven't done before. My son, Luke, is 19 months now and he is hitting new milestones left and right. He has mastered the walking and moved right through to running and now we are smack dab in the middle of talking. Each day there is a new word that comes from his mouth that causes me to pause. At times I wonder where he learned that specific word and at other times it is a word that I have been coaching him to say for days and then suddenly it just pops out at the most random times. And then there are those other times when the word that he chooses to use is one that you would rather not hear. It is a word that you have said in a lesser moment - a moment when your guard is down from anger or pain and the tongue is extra loose. And that is not a moment of pride. It is a moment of total awareness that your child sees and will ultimately copy everything you say and do.

Yesterday, Luke and I went to the park and he was going down all of the slides. Luke is all boy and he loves the adventure of climbing to the top of the slide and then sailing down. He used to reach for the hand of an adult to steady him and prepare him for the descent. But as I watched him at the park, I realized that he doesn't need me as much as he used to. And in that moment I was both proud of his independence and sad that he isn't a baby anymore. He was walking across the play bridge, taking one unsteady step after another - and there was uncertainty in his eyes but he never reached for me. And he made it slowly to the other side where he clapped and shouted "yeah".

All of these things were great in and of themselves, but the real smile moment came when Luke and I climbed to the top of the highest slide at the park. This slide had never been attempted before because it was considered a "big-boy slide" and we weren't ready for that. But seeing his independence on the small stuff, I figured we would attempt a bigger challenge. And as I sat at the bottom of the slide I had my camera aimed on his face. And this is what I saw through that lense:

Now I don't know if you caught what he said on the way down, but the word was "happy". This was the first time I had heard him say this word and I was floored to hear it. I was so proud of my cute little man who was proudly proclaiming his happiness with that one pure word, "happy". He continued to use the word throughout the day for various reasons - doign a puzzle, getting tickled and even reading a book. And this morning as I was placing him in his high chair to eat a McDonald's sausage mcgriddle sandwich and a hash brown I heard him exclaim over and over again, "happy,happy, happy". These cute little moments are what parenting is all about. It is the reward for all of the sleepless nights and crying fits that you must endure.

Being a parent is very hard work and you constantly wonder if you are doing a good job and providing the kind of structure and example that will nurture a child of strong character. And today I was pleased to know that my child is happy many times throughout his day. It was good to hear him communicate his joy over the big and small things in life. It was a nice reminder to find the silver lining in things, everyday - even in a McDonalds McGriddle sandwich.

So there you go. My son is growing up and getting more independent. And this is good. He is also unafraid to challenge himself and to express his joy. And this is very good. Indeed, my cup runneth over.

And to end this post, I want to add a few more photos of our day of milestones and adventures:

Luke is climbing the slide after he went down. This must be a boy thing.

Getting in position for a head-first trip down the slide.

Enjoying a leisurely ride in the swing.

At the top of the "big-boy slide".

This is Luke swinging and roaring and then moo-ing.

Here's to hoping that something in your day makes you so happy that you can't help but shout about it.