I just spent a few minutes holding The Baby because he woke up screaming. He’s sharing a room with his brother and sister for a few days, as we are visitors in our old home. I didn’t want to wake the other kids so rather than let him cry, I scooped him up and snuggled him back to sleep.
This isn’t my nature. For all three I’ve been quick to let them figure out how to soothe themselves back to sleep. But this week, with the end of kindergarten and the beginning of potty training (or at least the beginning of talking about it) I have realized that as cliche as it is, these kids are growing up way too fast and I worry I haven’t spent enough time snuggling.
I have spent my whole life anxious to get to the next step. I know I have hurried along when I should have spent more time drinking things in. I swore I wouldn’t do that with my children. I promised myself I would enjoy every minute that they were little because those minutes wouldn’t last very long.
But then, I had jobs to do and bills to pay and laundry to fold and boxes to pack. And, somewhere along the way I forgot to slow down and not miss a minute. So, now I will snuggle- as frequently as I am allowed. Because I know all too quickly will come the day where my kids will want to snuggle with anyone but their mom. And I don’t want to regret missing any minutes back when I had the chance.
I know it’s cliche, but they grow up too quickly and I refuse to wonder where those years disappeared to.
Tomorrow I will catch fireflies and play UNO and cuddle. So what if the laundry goes unfolded? There will be plenty of time for that.
P.S. Looking for more parenting guidance and tips for self-care? Check out From Chaos to Calm a guided training to help you feel better in this tough season.
