One of my favorite parts of motherhood is watching my children’s personalities unfold. Little-flower’s propensity to get angry has been pretty evident to our friends and family since day one. While the vast majority of newborns sleep through their first day of life, Little-flower cried every time she was passed to someone else to hold her. I knew then we might have a problem on our hands! And, true to her disposition on day one of life, she has been a pretty feisty little girl!

The thing that most people do not get to see though is the overtly nurturing nature that she also has. She continues to develop great interest in her dolls as she is getting older. She offers her snacks to them before taking a bite. She holds them on her shoulder, patting their backs. She makes sure they get something to drink. It is like watching a mini-mama in action.

If you have not guessed through some of my posts, cold and flu season is in full swing in our household. Or, as it seems, several seasons worth of colds and flu have descended upon our house at once. It has been a bit crazy! In the last week I have had both strep throat and the stomach flu. (Not a combination I would recommend!)

Yesterday, after doing a few chores, I was pretty wiped out. I curled up on the couch to rest for a bit before moving onto the next item on the to-do list. As soon as Little-Flower saw me lay down, she went and grabbed my favorite blanket. “Blanket? Blanket?” she said as she brought it to me and tried with all of her 21-month-old capabilities to cover me up with it. My mini-mama in action!

It made me smile both in the immediate sense of the sweetness of the action and in the greater sense of watching this bit of her personality blossom. She can be defiant and angry, but she also has a tremendous drive to nurture.

Watching her genuine nature develop in the privacy of our home where there is no need to be anything but herself is one of my greatest gifts as a mother. Prior to having children, this was not something I understood. It is not one of the things I dreamed about or longed for.

Nowadays, watching my children’s personalities develop is one of the things I am most thankful for. I get to see the many layers that make them who they are. It is amazing! In all of Turkey-man’s hyper craziness I would have never guessed there to be such a sensitive, kind heart. In all of Little-Flower’s anger, I would have never guessed there to be such a deep need to nurture.

In some ways, it seems like I get a little head start in seeing who they are becoming before they are old enough to be aware. These little hidden aspects are the things that make them unique. I hope as they grow we are able to help them embrace and nurture those little nuances. I hope they are able to love all of the parts of their personality and learn to use them well! I know that I love all of these little parts! I am so fortunate to be able to call these two little souls my children!