I’ve never been a morning person but Leina is changing my mind. Lately, my favorite hours of the day have been from 7 to 9am. You see, that’s when Leina shines.

After a long night’s rest, Leina awakes on fire. She giggles and coos, kicks and laughs. She’s bright eyed and ready to explore anything her chubby little hands can find. For those two beautiful hours, my daughter and I play. She loves to lie on her back and memorize my face while her little hand pats my cheek. Or she’ll get the baby heebeejeebees and kick her legs, flail her legs and squak at the top of her lungs at nothing at all. This morning, as I lay on my back next to her while she cooed up at the ceiling fan, I realized how much I love the mornings. It suddenly hit me that this – this moment next to my daughter – was pure joy. Like sunlight through green leaves or the smell of baking bread, her little voice so happy and sweet just lit my heart.

So I rolled over and smushed her while slobbering her soft cheeks with messy mommy kisses.

Hey, I couldn’t help it, ok?