The Thirsty Crow and Baby A the Resourceful

Since we emancipated the girls a few weeks ago, taking down the baby gates that had delineated their playroom sanctuary from the rest of the house, we've all had a lot of new experiences.

The girls have...

...seen me put in my contacts every morning, as I can't just leave them playing for a moment while I run upstairs...they accompany me everywhere.

...helped sort and "fold" laundry...and I've had to give up some of my perfectly-aligned stacks of socks and washcloths.

...learned to carry their cups from the table to the sink...giving me hope that I won't bear soul responsibility for dishes for the next 15 years.

...gotten pretty proficient in taking things to the recycle bin...and I hope they're learning to respect the environment.

...and on and on and on.

Many of these are housekeeping-oriented learnings, and I know it's time the girls start to get a larger sense for how things work around the house.

There have also been so many sweet moments, too. I love...

...when the girls come to see what I'm doing in the kitchen, and then they run back to their play kitchen, full of new inspiration.

...when Baby B comes to find me in the kitchen, just to say, "I love you, Mommy," and then skips back to her playing.

...that the girls find Sasha's toys and try to take them to her (although the thought of cat slobber on their hands makes me go through even more baby wipes during the course of the day).

...seeing the girls reading at the kitchen table, just like Mommy and Daddy read the paper, and Mommy enjoys her books.

And along those lines, I captured one of the cutest things (I think!) in recent weeks. On Day 3 of the unleashment, I was working in the kitchen to get lunch ready. The girls were reading at the table, and I was thankful they were entertaining themselves long enough for me to peel a couple of kiwis.

I wasn't paying too much attention, only enough to know where they were and that they weren't swinging from the chandelier.

When I finally focused on them, here's what I found...

I couldn't help but think of the Hindu folktale, The Thirsty Crow. The crow -- seeing a tiny bit of water at the bottom of a tall pitcher of water -- works and works to put pebble after pebble into the pitcher to bring the water level up so he can drink.

Baby A wasn't comfortable on her knees at the table, so she assembled a pile of books (with Baby B's help, it should be noted), until she was just the right height.

Add "the exhibition of new resourcefulness" to the list of things the emancipation has brought us.