Having 3 young kids I often get unsolicited advice/opinions from people I know as well as complete strangers. My oldest is 4 years old so I'm fairly used to this and although it can be annoying at times I also know that most people have good intentions and take it all with a grain of salt.
By and large the most common advice I get from folks who have older children or adult children usually goes something like this: "Savor every moment.", "It goes by so fast.", "The days are long but the years are short." I seriously hear this from kind older ladies at Target at least once every couple of weeks!
Funny thing is I know how fleeting these days are and I know that they will be gone before we know it! I think this is why I take so many pictures, I'm trying so hard to capture all the details of our lives so when the day comes that I can't remember those details there they will be, waiting for me to pour through the albums.
Although I know how important it is to "savor the moments" with my children there are definite days where I struggle with this. Probably more often than not if I'm being honest. When the baby is screaming, my toddler spilled cereal all over the floor and the dog peed on the new carpet in the living room it's hard to remember and believe that I will miss these days. When I'm going through the bedtime routine with the kids it's often hard to think about anything other than the silence, cup of tea (or glass of wine- depending on the day) and quiet uninterrupted conversations with my husband that will be had 'If I could just get them to bed".
This past weekend we were at a wedding and a distant family member came up to compliment me on our "beautiful family". She then said the usual "It goes by so fast" comments but then also added her kids are out of the house and all grown up and "The silence is deafening!" She said it with such conviction and I'm not quite sure why it struck me so much but it really got me thinking about being better at REALLY being in the moment with my kids. I like to think of it as a goal or maybe a journey...something to always work on and continue to get better at.
How do you stay in the moment with your kids? Any advice you'd want to share? I'd love for you to share in the comments!
If you like what you see here please join me on Facebook: Imprints From Tricia on Facebook
Sometimes it seems like just yesterday we brought Ethan home from the hospital, but it's been 11 years. Some of those times have flown by in a whirl wind of activity, giggles, learning, friends, etc. But I remember there were some LONG days too! Especially with my colicky Luke who is now 8! So yes, the time goes by fast, but while we might miss having our "babies", each new stage/age brings something new and wonderful! Of course there's new challenges as well, and although it doesnt happen as often as when they were little, when my 11 or 8 year old sits on my lap and tells me he loves me...it means so much and it's easy to savor those rare special moments!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely LOVE the photo with this post Tricia. You'll be able to savor moments like that for a long time because of your beautiful photography!
Ah, thanks for your words of wisdom Amy!! :) I love your positivity about how each new stage brings something new and wonderful! Thanks also, for your photo compliment!!
ReplyDelete