Mothering nirvana, Part 2

I've been telling Rachel than when she gets a real bed, that I could curl up in bed and read with her, and wouldn't that be fun?

Tonight, spontaneously, we did it. "Cuddle with me in bed," she said.

"Um, I don't have time," I said.

"You have time," she said, looking at me and smiling.

This time in her life will never come again, right? So I said, "how about we cuddle in bed and I tell you a story?"

"Yeah!" she said.

So I curled up next to her, ran my fingers through her hair and stroked her back while telling her a story I made up (using real characters) about a climb up the Tetons that didn't go so well. By the time I was done, she was asleep! Her slow, even breathing didn't let up when I whispered, "I love you Rachel," tiptoed out and closed the door behind me. Oh, I'm so glad we're in this stage because I plan to curl up every night with her if she'll let me.