The idea of a blog on the spiritual side of motherhood sounds really heavy and I've struggled a bit to come up with new things to say on the topic. There isn't too much to do for an infant, spiritually speaking, besides picking the religion, if any, that you want for him and doing whatever sort of infant initiation that religion has... or is there?
Somewhere between last Sunday's "Music Sunday" celebration at my congregation, memories of the jubilant side of Palm Sunday (& Easter) celebrations as a child (Maundy Thursday and Good Friday being things I didn't really notice until Middle School) and of course, today's April Fools' Day. I'm reminded that spirituality, like childhood and, by consequence, Motherhood, should include a certain amount of frivolity and play.
Sweet Pea has played peek a boo and other simple games for a while, but he seems more and more playful by the day and I love it. It's also glorious how a little play can make the daily grind more enjoyable. Just last weekend, Sweet Pea started a game of peek a boo (using the clothing I was wearing, unfortunately, but it was all he could reach) while grocery shopping. I'll take that over fussing to get picked up everyday of the week.
Some games are more fun than others, he likes the one where he un-stacks things I've just stacked. I enjoy that game more when it's blocks or stacking rings than when it's books on the shelf, but even when it's books I try to remember that this is both fun and learning for him. (And do my best to direct him to his own bookcase and to leave the grown-up books alone).
There's a lot of talk about how we need to let kids play, these days, but I really believe it's just as good for the adult spirit to embrace a play. So today, I'll be looking for a good opportunity to enjoy April Fools- and I plan to play.