Until that Thursday afternoon when my phone rang at work.
“Hey, babe,” Sophia said, and I could hear the stress in her voice. “Can you do me a huge favor? I can’t pick up Lizzy today. There’s this meeting with the executive team that I absolutely cannot miss. Can you get her instead?”
I checked the time. 3:15 p.m. If I left now, I could make it.
“Yeah, sure. No problem!”
“Thank you so much. You’re a lifesaver.”
I told my boss I had a family emergency and drove straight to the kindergarten. When I walked through those doors, Lizzy’s face lit up like a firework. God, I missed these moments. I got so caught up in work that I forgot how good it felt just to see my daughter smile.
“Daddy!” She ran to me, her little sneakers squeaking on the floor.
I crouched down and pulled her into a hug. “Hey, sweetheart. Ready to go home?”
“Uh-huh!”
I grabbed her pink jacket off the hook — the one with the cartoon bears on the sleeves — and started helping her into it. She was chattering about something her friend Emma said during snack time, and I was smiling, just soaking it all in.
