A Shoebox of Memories

I am 2 1/2 years old. My mom used to tell people how old I am in months but she stopped doing that. The last time she told me how old I was with months she said, "Abby Jane, I haven't slept in 18 months and I'm so tired." That was a long time ago, but I still don't think she has slept. My mom is not a good sleeper. I wake up a lot, and when I do, I look over, and there she is, wide awake. Since she's up anyway, she is always willing to help me get back to sleep.

I live a charmed life.

My mommy loves me more that anything in the world. I know this because she always says, "Abby, I love you more than anything in the world." My dad bought my mom a charm bracelet for mother's day, it was going to be a surprise, but I told her. In al fairness, I also told her that I had bought her a blue cookie for her, so my surprise was ruined too.

I'm 32 months old - and I have a lot of words.

Daddy said that he wanted some way for mommy to remember all the magical things that happen to mommy and me. He thinks it is sweet, I just think he is doing it because he can never seem to remember anything...I don't know why, he sleeps more than any of us! Dad says the big things are easy to remember, those are the things that go on the bracelet, but it is the little things that slip away, the funny little things that I say during the big things.

Today, before I went to learn ballet, I taught mommy something new about her hair: it is yellow all over, except the first little part that is closest to her head, so I told her, "Mommy, your hair is two different colors." It seems almost every day I have something I can teach my parents.

One thing I have learned in 32 months is that big memories live on coffee tables and framed over the mantle, or on  a charm bracelet but everyone needs a shoebox for those little scraps of memories that they just don't want to slip away.

This is that shoebox.