Yesterday morning when I woke up I found the front door open and my kids’ breakfast missing from the kitchen counter where I’d set it out the night before. The kids had carried their cereal and sippy cups out to the front step where they were having a picnic breakfast. I was invited to join them with my fruit and yogurt. It was lovely to sit there in the cool of the morning, listening to the birds and being quiet with my children.
I was surprised that they had the idea to take their breakfast outside. I cannot guess what inspired it. I am pleased, though, that they knew it would be okay. I never explicitly gave them permission to have a picnic breakfast—why would I have thought of that?—but they reasoned that it did not break any rules, it did not put them in any danger, and it would not have any negative consequences. That is the kind of decision-making I want to foster in my children.
A blue sky, leaves shimmering in the breeze, children who are learning to think for themselves—it was a beautiful morning.
Nothing could be a lovelier way to start a day! And your children know that their mother is the queen of picnics!
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