And since that very first day in which we sat down, attempting to spoon bits of homemade brown rice cereal into her little mouth, Hadley has wanted to hold her own spoon.
Each time she would see a fresh spoonful of food heading her way, she would reach out and grab on to it. She would then give me a look as if to say, "It's okay, Mom. I've got this." So a few times I let her try.
One heaping spoon to the eye. Ouch! Try again. One more spoonful to the nose. Not quite, but closer. Baby food everywhere.
If I let her have it her way, she would starve... so Momma still does the spooning and feeding, and Hadley still tries to take over the spoon.
One day, while chowing down some of her favorite {organic peaches, banana, & oatmeal}, Hadley quickly figured something out. She realized that by grabbing on to my pinkie-finger she could guide my hand {and her spoon} to her mouth when she felt like she was ready for more food. Holding on to that same finger she could push the spoon away when she found some other object in our vicinity more interesting than taking another bite.
{Smart cookie}
It was as this moment I realized that though she may look just like her father, she has quite a bit of me in her as well. She wants to be in control.
Yep. It's hard to admit that, but she got that trait from me. She wants to steer her own ship.
I began to wonder- mentally stepping back and looking at this parent-child encounter- how closely this may relate to my communication with God at times. Not the communication that comes via conversation, because we all know that as Christians we are good at saying, "I trust you, Jesus. I trust that You know what's best for me."
But what do my actions convey when I attempt to guide His hand? Maybe give Him a little "nudge in the right direction"? {Ha!}
What am I telling the Lord when I push away from what He is offering? Do I even recognize that what I am pushing away from is really Him?
No, I do not let my 6 month old daughter feed herself, because I know what is best for her.
And I, in turn, need to trust the Lord. Even when that means waiting, waiting, waiting... {that's hard to do}.. Or even when that means accepting what He has placed in my life or taking me through.
Because He knows what is best for my growth.
"As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all." - Ecclesiates 11:5
"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." - Jeremiah 29:11
Love the picture! She is growing so quickly and I love that you are sharing the previous moments!
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