Princess

As the entire world was glued to the TV in anticipation for the Royal Wedding, Bean was skipping in circles around the living room. Ladybug, spinning the toys attached to the stationary entertainer, glanced up every now and then when the cheering crowds increased in volume. "EW! Why are they kissing!?", Bean stopped short. "Because they got married and the girl is now a princess! A real live princess", I explained. "What does a princess do?", she questioned. "Well, first of all they are pampered, have lots of money, live in a HUGE....", I started to say sarcastically. I could see the word "confused" written all over her face. As I bent down to her level I quickly corrected myself. "What I mean is, a princess is always nice. They help when people are in need, are extremely giving, and they love unconditionally."

After breakfast, we headed outside to burn off some morning energy. 4 kids quickly ran up to greet us; two we recognized as our neighbor's kids and the other two were unfamiliar. Apparently an acquaintance of our neighbor had abandoned the children in her care. As she retold the story, she hugged and caressed them as if they were her own. I offered to donate extra baby clothing, bottles, diapers, wipes, etc. since they were left with nothing. We gathered the belongings and rushed them back to their house. We placed the items on the doorstep as we could hear the kids crying inside the home. We could overhear the neighbor singing a sweet song, calming the children instantly. "See baby, SHE is a real life princess", I whispered.

Later that day, while Ladybug and Bean were "discussing" the tastiness of peas, I discussed the adoption that my cousin was going through with my husband. "She will do anything for those kids. She wakes up at 3 to start prepping for the day, has a full time job, drives an hour home to pick them up by 4, cooks them dinner every night...it's amazing", I said in awe. "Mommy, she is a princess too!" I shook my head in agreement.

The day was finally coming to an end and Ladybug was on the verge of falling asleep. She was limp in my arms as the rocking motion calmed her of any anxiety. I noticed Bean peeking into the room as if watching a secret meeting. She tiptoed in, making sure to not make a sound, and slowly approached my side. She studied my movements, listened to my random humming, how I stroked Ladybug's hair; how it soothed her sister. As Ladybug peacefully subsided into a slumber, I placed her in the crib and left the room. I let out a sigh of relief and quickly picked up Bean, hugging her as tight as I could. As I started to plant kisses on her cheeks she grabbed my face with her two little hands. She stared me in the eye, noses almost touching, and whispered "YOU are a princess TOO, Momma. OUR princess."