Cherish the Moments

Ive been playing around with a blog post in my head for a couple of weeks now. Then when I was on FB today one of my friends posted a video about the ordinary moments of being a mom and to enjoy them. That gave me the kick in the pants to get this post written.

I remember when I was pregnant with our first and I would look into the future of our "plan to have five kids", it seemed a lifetime away. Here we are at kid number four. There will only be one more birthing experience, one more euphoric first time look and touch at our beautiful newborn, one more baby to hold, and nurse. Theres only one more child to name, and love, and raise (will we be able to stop at five? Well thats a question to answer another day....). It doesnt seem so far away now.

Ive been convicted lately to really enjoy all the things of being a mommy, not just the the good and big things but everything. I dont want to just say a halfhearted "Good job Bud" to my son when he shows me his new creation with his legos, I want to really look at it and give him a true, "Wow Bud thats really good!". Or when Tiny wants to sit on my lap, I want to take the time to really love her. If the dishes or phone conversation have to wait till later, thats ok.

Some days I really think I have this mothering thing down, the kids are helpful, well behaved, and sweet. Then there are the days that I walk around with a tension headache. It seems like the kids want to see who can drive me the most crazy. They fight, they get into things, they disobey. I beat myself up and wonder what Im doing wrong. All I want is a moment of silence. I clean up toothpaste in the sink, put another pile of laundry away, do dishes all day long... But then I remind myself this wont last forever. Someday the kids will be gone, the house will echo with the days of yesterday. The empty sink and laundry basket will mock me. Then I'll wish that I had crayon to scrub off the wall or a daughter with Vaseline smeared in her hair, I'll wish that I had to tell George and Blondie to quit fighting in the back of the van. I'll miss vacuuming up smashed food in the carpets or mopping up bath water on the floor, or having to unplug a toilet with gobs of toilet paper in it. Someday I wont have to get up at night with a crying baby, I'll be able to sleep the night through, even sleep in if I want to. But then I'll miss snuggling up to my baby and feeling her little hand curling around my finger and her other hand scratching my back as she eats, or early morning announcements of "Im hungry Mommy!" made by our beautiful, loud, vivacious girl . Cherish the moments Julie I tell myself, cherish the moments.

Someday my hubby and I will be able to sit next to each other in church. We'll be able to hold hands all the time, we'll be able to hold a conversation without interruptions. But we'll miss the dog piles on the living room floor as the kids wrestle with R, listening to the kids play in the backyard, painting fingernails, watching R comb our little girls' hair. I'll miss Tiny's sweet cuddles, blowing kisses to George at night, Happys all around cuteness, and the random yet hilarious things Blondie says.

I'll even miss the stressful days.

Im learning to cherish the moments.