Yesterday was a big day. Not only was it Inauguration Day, it was also the first of 10 days with palindrome dates. (Try it – 1/21/21 backwards is 1/21/21). But that isn’t all that happened. No sir, not at our house. Yesterday is the day that Abby finally got the hang of doing cartwheels.

I don’t know why this simplest of gymnastics moves has always eluded her. Madeleine can tilt-a-whirl across the yard like it was nothing (left-handed no less), but Abby has always struggled to stick the landing. We were visiting with my mom in our backyard, and for some reason Abby decided to give us a show with her cartwheel. Every time she got her feet up in the air, she sort of smashed into the ground with a thud. I mean, the way her feet came down it really echoed. We don’t know how she managed to make such a noise.

We watched her a few times and then encouraged her to just let the momentum take her all the way around and something clicked. And for the first time, she stuck a cartwheel. So now both girls are cartwheeling across the yard with Pearl, of course, in hot pursuit, nipping at ankles and ponytails. I’m calling it another beautiful day in a Life Lived Outside.