Etni's Shining Moment!

Now it's time for Etni's addition to this blog! Etni is my 4 year old little princess, and she is just that! She has more attitude than I know what to do with! I have noticed that she is JUST LIKE ME and that's terrifying! I'm trying to be a better mom each day. I have to admit that I've struggled a lot with being so angry and quick to yell at her and I HATE that! Yes, mother, I used the word "hate", but only because it perfectly describes the emotion I feel when I'm not being the mother I should be. I decided to try to do more things with her each day. I don't want to look back and regret wasting her childhood on being upset or ignoring her when she needs me the most. I bought two learning posters from the dollar store to help her with her numbers and letters. It's so fun to sit with her and help her learn! I call it her "learning center", which is just a section of our wall! It's amazing how a few minutes of that each day can bring us closer together. It's doesn't take much to feel love between us mothers and our children, but too many of us, including me, take that for granted and don't cherish the small moments.

Etni started preschool here in Lethbridge on September 8th. She attends Noah's Ark 1st Adventure Preschool. We LOVE it! She gets so excited everyday! Each day when it's time to go to school, she tells me, "I'm so excited to see my teacher!" She gets to go 4 days a week (Monday-Thursday) because she has a moderate speech problem, so they give her a little extra attention to work with her speech. Each day at school is a specific color, which means the kids are supposed to wear that selected color for the specific day. Josh and I kept laughing at the fact that I NEVER put her in the correct color for the day. I lost the sheet of paper with the color schedule and had to guess. But, of course, I got it wrong the first week! We hoped she wouldn't be the "loser" who couldn't even wear the correct color on the correct day! But, don't worry, after a week or so, we got another schedule and now she is one of the "cool" kids now! Ha!

Okay, so the picture below was taken just before leaving for Etni's first day of school. This side shot might seem odd, but if you look closely (it's kinda small), you can see the absolute raw and natural beauty that a child has at this age. I love the side profile of her face. She is beautiful. I'm about to cry! I love her so much!

Well, to wrap up my Etni highlight, I want to let everyone know that being a mother is the best calling I have ever had in this life and definitely the most difficult. I often ask Heavenly Father why He thinks I could possibly handle this responsibility. Sometimes I really think He's nuts for trusting a child's life in my care! As I stated earlier, I have not cherished Etni to the fullest and really appreciated her as much as I could. That's one of my goals with this blog. I want to take the time to remember the good times I have with her and the small moments. I want to write them down, capture them in a photo, and never forget that I was given a true "gift" from Heavenly Father. I was given this precious little girl "on loan" (as my mother describes it) to love her, teach her and prepare her for surviving in this crazy world and to teach her how to get back to her Heavenly Father. I never want to take that gift for granted again. Ever. The tears rolling down my cheeks and the love I feel right now help me realize that I CAN love her and take care of her in a way that would make Heavenly Father proud. Here's to motherhood- the hardest and most divine calling on this earth!