Her Two Front Teeth

Its happened. Last month Kenna lost her two front teeth, and overnight it feels to me as if all the remaining traces of her baby-ness are gone, shes now fully a little girl. While the loss of her front teeth has been more than exciting to her, and obviously adorable, its also been surprisingly hard on me. Its just teeth right? Nope. Its signaling the end of this phase of childhood. The toddler stages have come and gone and now weve flown through her pre-school years as well.

From the time Kenna was born until about three years old, I had a baby who needed me, who needed naps, who snuggled, and didnt argue (I probably thought she argued then, I had no idea what I was in for.) Its hard for me to put into words. Those days seemed long at the time, but now theyre fleeting. Time is slipping through my fingers so fast, I cant even attempt to pull it in.. With the passing of time, it has ushered in a new set of challenges. Challenges that I knew would come, but I still feel poorly equipped to handle on my best days. As a parent, am I really ready for this and all the future brings? Things like attending school, learning to read, making friends, learning math (Zach can handle this one) and finding her footing in an unstable world. Her years of blissful innocence are slowly coming to an end, and I find myself grieving for them while also excitedly anticipating the days ahead.

The recent stay at home orders have been a blessing and a curse. While the disruption in our life and economy has been nothing short of a nightmare, Ive never been more grateful for this gift of time. After only eight months of Kindergarten here we are, back at home once again. Back to the place where I can protect her and keep her safe. And yet, I know I cant shelter her from days ahead. From a life that will be full of struggles, but also full of beauty and excitement. So Im learning to take it one day at a time. I want to welcome these school years with open arms and a lets do this attitude. Heres to the good times, and the bad, the challenges and the laughs. The time is going to pass by anyway, were going to make the most of it while we can.

[narrative]