Long eyelashes, not the luck of his mommy, poke at splayed hands.
His flat palms press into the baby smush of his cheeks, round toes curl and bend towards each other, balanced on the couch cushion.
So far from carpet.
Closing my book I fold him into my lap, feathering it’s okay‘s, there’s nothing to be scared of‘s and Mommy’s here‘s through his hair as my mind curses Disney for making the Lion King.
Little hands relax and rub my sleeve, up and down, consoling me for his own fear.
Two more sets of feet dangle far from us, halfway to the floor.
He remembers them and pushes from me, scooting to his bend in the leather and smiling.
Because they are.
I return to the sentence I left, his head still tilts in my direction.

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Your Sawyer is so very sweet. Disney can be scary – I wish it wasn’t. So glad that you and 2 of his older siblings were there to reassure him that the mean lions are not real.
Oh, my… that sweet little face! Love your words as always. What a beautifu glimpse into motherhood this is 🙂
Beautiful as always. And what an adorable little man!
I love how they rub *us* to make themselves feel better. That line really touched me because Lil’ bit does the same thing and it’s so sweet!
I love your blog and all you have to say. So much so, I gave you an award if you want to check it out. 🙂
http://www.perspectiveparenting.com/2012/01/11/spread-the-sunshine/
See?? Moms ARE magic!
Oh you… this is breathtaking. Truly.
Just. Wow.
Oh, how I love that he rubbed YOUR arm up and down…like he was comforting you.
So sweet.
I remember watching the movie Brother Bear with my YOUNG children. Karly would cry every time the mama bear died. (Which begs the question why we saw this more than once?)
And also this: why do all the sweet mamas die in Disney?
So sad.
This really touched me – what can be more comforting than a mother’s lap and a hand in the hair? It makes me long for my one-year-old who is sleeping now and rarely has time to cuddle; she’s too busy being silly!
So beautiful!
What a cutie- and my boys all get their eyelashes from Dad. It’s so not fair.
It is not necessary something to be long in order to be eye and heart-catching. Beautiful sweet story:)
This is positively beautiful, Jessica. Reminds me of my baby…
Such a beautiful moment captured. You have such a beautiful way with words.
It is isn’t it? Just reminds us what an important job we have. Nice to “see” you again Missy :).
You wrote this little moment so well and right into my heart. Gorgeous!
Beautiful.
I actually kind of like watching The Lion King with my little dude, because he knows when all of the scary moments are coming up, so he positions my arms so that he only sees small portions of the screen, and can cuddle in close if the situation warrants.
Well now you just made me like The Lion King again, because it’s nice to be needed still.
oh that was simply gorgeous *plus I love the new picture at the top of your blog, it’s PERFECT!*
it’s true, our arms and hugs, even for a moment, are the safe place..and I love being that harbor for them. Wow, this was gorgeous.
Thank you so much Kir, amazing to get to be their safe place isn’t it?
He is so lucky to have you (and of course Parker and McKenna, too.) We’ve never even watched the Lion King. Abbey LOVES the book, but I even have to censor that a little.
Your words are having wings and flying all around me when reading. Beautiful writing (as always).
Beautiful my friend. I love that he goes back to his siblings. That melts my heart.
A mother’s touch sure does make it all okay. You captured that beautifully.
aww… poor little guy. you captured the moment so descriptively though. I love how I know what happened without you saying what happened. such a gift you have, jessica.
So lovely. I especially like your description of placing the book down and returning to it as opposed to my rendition of rolling my eyes, sighing and wishing I could just get back to my own silence already.
Then again, I’m in the middle of the Hunger Game Trilogy and cannot be held accountable for my attitude about putting the books down. 🙂
He is so adorable! All to soon he’ll be grown up and mommy cuddles will be a thing of the past.
I’ve always thought the Lion King was TOO much for young kids too!
Really, what is with all of these Disney movies? The more I watch them with my kids the more I think they are too much for little eyes.
He’s adorable!
Such beautiful sweet words. We can barely fit on the couch together anymore. I love when one of my girls ends up sliding their legs across mine for more room. Those precious little details that remind you how close you are truly connected.
Precious moments. How you put it into words is awesome. Makes me really miss my babies now that I’m back to work!!
Such a simple splendid moment about how a moms touch can make things all better in an instant.
So beautifully written as always
Xoxo
Stunning, as always.
{And you’re back! Hooray!}