signed, with love

So, post 401. Two and half years, 400 brain dumps later and I'm still here. Not a bad showing, all things considered. I used up post 400 for a political rant because it was sitting in my craw leaving a miserable after taste. Now that it’s out there, my breath is all minty fresh! Now if only I could do something about the gas...

I attend a lot of meetings for the School Board that often don’t end until well after my kids are tucked up in bed and visiting dreamland. Just this week our monthly meeting went from 5:30 until almost 11:00. Now that it’s budget prep time, there are more meetings added to the schedule to huddle with the community budget committee, the department committees to review budget detail and then general committee meetings to keep on top of topics. And then there is the standard monthly meeting. There is a considerable investment of time that takes me away from my family. I knew this going in and accept it without bitching.

My daughter has taken to asking the same question every morning before school – Mom, do you have any meetings tonight? If the answer is no, I get a great big smile in return. If the answer is yes, the questions continue – what time will I be home? Is it going to be a long meeting? Will I be home for dinner?

Usually, given that evenings schedule, I can give her an idea of whether I’ll be late or not.

Without fail if I get home after she’s in bed, there’s a note waiting for me right inside the front door, where I can’t miss seeing it.

Written in my daughter’s loose penmanship and often decorated with doodles that span cartoon dogs, peace signs, hearts, flowers and happy faces, these notes travel along the same lines, but each one warms my heart and makes me smile. And reminds me that I should thank the universe that my almost teenage daughter actually likes to spend time with me and does not yet consider me an embarrassment of epic proportions.

“HI MOM!

I Love You! How was your day? I missed you!

I hope you had a good meeting. I don't know if I told you but I was picked Student of the Month!

If you get home after I’m asleep, please please please come in and give me a hug and kiss. You can wake me up if you want, but you have to come in and kiss me good night.

Have a great night,

Signed, with love,

Your favorite little girl in the whole world,
Giggles”

Because I want her to know these notes always make me smile and add to the comfort of coming home, I make sure she knows that not only did I see her note (because she will ask)but that I did indeed go in to kiss and hug her. I’ll tell her how I found her all tucked up under the covers, whether the dog was taking up most of the bed and if she was drooling on her pillow.

It really is the little things that mean the most sometimes.