As I write this post I'm cradling little Miss 2 in my arms.
My head tells me that I should be folding the six loads of laundry that are currently awaiting my attention. But my heart reminds me it can wait.
These little moments, holding my child even though she is asleep, reading an extra story before bed, letting the baby stay in the bath just to play! These are the moments that matter.
I don't now how many times a day I say "Just a minute" to my kids or "I will be right there" but it is a lot. Then at least once a day I have the same realisation. Stop. Stop and look what you are missing.
The smiles, the laughter, the love. The little moments that make up a childhood are gone to fast. If we don't look and I mean look closely, it will be over and gone. Once a second has passed, you can't get it back.
Our children grow before our very eyes and the speed at which they change can get lost in the day to day of life. I look at my daughter who is but 12 years old and think how much she has grown and how fast the years have past.
I look to my youngest with the sad realisation that the next 12 years will pass just as fast if not quicker. I feel my life moving faster and faster as I get older. It makes me wonder. When I was a child time seemed limitless. Days would drag on and the year long wait for Christmas or a birthday seemed to take a lifetime.
Now the years seem to be gone in a heartbeat. How is it that our perception of time is altered as we age and how wonderful it would be to go back to our younger selves with knowledge age has given us. The knowledge that time will go faster and we should enjoy the slow pace that childhood allows.
My children are my world, the reason for my existence. The laundry will be there tomorrow. As will the dishes, the bills, the long list of responsibilities that come with being an adult.
But for right now in this moment, the only thing that matters is this hug. It matters not just to me, but also to my daughter, I'm sure when she is older she won't remember weather the laundry was always folded or if there were dishes left in the sink. But she will remember the nights I rocked her to sleep, the stories I read and the time, the time we spent just being together.
A reminder of the importance of time. For me and for you. Enjoy your children tonight, for they won't stay young forever.
Mumofmany.
Source: Wings of time.
Source: More sky