You’re Going to Miss This

I don’t know if it was Mother’s Day, or the beautiful weather, a few days of my kids napping at the same time (hallelujah!) or maybe I’m just in a sweet spot of parenting right now, but things are good. This past week the lyrics of the Trace Adkins song, You’re Going to Miss This have been playing in my head: “You’re going to miss this, you’re going to want this back. You’re going to wish these days hadn’t gone by so fast. These are some good times. Take a good look around. You may not know it now, but you’re going to miss this”. I have been really noticing the special moments I’ve been having with my kids and realizing they are not going to last forever so I’m trying to stay in the present and enjoy them. Many wiser parents have also told me this exact same thing so maybe it’s starting to stick. Here’s a few highlights that will maybe remind you of some of the best parts of your kids when you have a week of just seeing the tough moments.

• Reading books before naps and bedtime with the kids sitting on my lap or cuddled up beside me
• Being the person they go to for comfort. It’s always when you get the biggest hugs.
• My daughter saying “I love you Mama” out of nowhere
• My son’s big toothless grins that are caused by me just looking at him
• His sweet giggles when I’m tickling him and kissing his cheeks
• The joy he has just from the quickest game of Pat-A-Cake or Peek-A-Boo
• Their happiness when I’m doing the silliest things. The other day I sang a weird song I made up and was tickling them and both of them were laughing so hard. It was the best sound. I didn’t want it to end.
• I can do weird things and they’re not embarrassed by me yet. They actually think most things I do are funny (I don’t think anyone has ever said I’m funny)
• Watching Emmelyn learn new things and do them by herself. She’s so proud because “I do it all by on myself”. Sometimes her shoes are kept on the wrong feet because I don’t want to squash her pride.
• Listening to her stories that are so random, out of the blue and don’t make any sense but sometimes they make a lot of sense!
• Sometimes when I go to the bathroom I get a “Good job Mom! Want me to wipe for you?”
• Both kids sitting on my lap at the same time
• Watching Emmelyn hug and kiss her baby brother and make him smile
• Playing games like hide and seek together. Em instructs me to hide her in the closet then go count in the kitchen. Then I pretend I can’t find her for a few seconds until she says “I’m in here!” The best is when she hides on her own and just puts her face on the floor with her butt in the air right in plain view.
• When Deacon is crying and I can’t calm him down Em checks on me- “Are you okay Mama? Do you need help?”
• The joy Emmelyn has just from making cookies together and then sharing some with Dad when he gets home
• The excitement of having a special snack together outside on the deck- it’s only chocolate milk mixed with regular milk but it’s the best thing ever!
• The love she has for her stuffed animals
• When she copies my every move- not always the best thing but it’s the sincerest form of flattery, they say
• Watching Emmelyn make her phone calls- First it was to Grandma, telling her she did Mom’s nails. Then it was to Grandpa- he did most of the talking. He was going to work at the hospital (he’s actually a farmer). Then she called Santa. She had to make sure he was wearing a mask. She fake laughs and walks around the whole time saying yep, yeah, yep.
• Their curiosity and fascination with things we don’t even notice- birds, dandelions, rocks (okay the rocks get a bit annoying)
• They both go to bed by 8:00 PM and Mom and Dad get some time to ourselves!

When I look at this list, it seems like such a simple time. There are hard moments for sure. The sleepless nights are hard. The tantrums and high emotions are hard. The lack of self care is hard. The house constantly being a disaster is hard. But when I think back on a few great moments from this week, I feel so grateful to have my family. I’m so grateful to be in the position that I’m in. I feel so grateful for all the joy that my kids bring me every single day. Even if you don’t have kids or if your kids are grown up and gone, I encourage you to make a list of everything that has brought you some happiness this week. I promise it will warm you up and give you a boost for the next week going forward. The world is a pretty dark place these days and finding joy in the simple moments is so important. There are so many things to appreciate and bring you happiness when you take the time to look for them.