So, to back track a little on some of my thoughts as of lately. Last week I took Eva and Sam for pics at JCP. For those of you who are my photography friends...so sorry. It is almost FREE for me to go. Anyhoo...picture days are...well, let's say not the most fun days with two kids and outfits and trying to get them both to smile..yada yada yada... Well, this particular day at JCP, it was really busy. Our sitting was an hour late and my kids took their sweet time cooperating. So, when we left the portrait studio, I was spent and my attitude was less than stellar as were my two kids.. It was lunch time for all three of us and so we headed to Chick-fil-a. It is walking distance from the studio. Well, passing thru the fat section on the way to the bathroom, a little old lady in a walker was shopping and passed us going the opposite way. She looked at my two kids and at me (hopefully I was smiling) and she just said something very simple. "oh my...you are so lucky". Now, let's don't get into some theological discussion and dissect (spell check) the whole luck thing. So, I said back to her..."oh, I sure am" and we just both kept walking. I feel like we exchanged far more than that. I know that God used her to remind me of what a blessing these kids are, how blessed I am to be home with my kids. How blessed I am that I have a husband willing to sacrifice and work 37 jobs if he has to so that I can be home to invest in them and our family, how blessed that I had the resources to even take the kids to have their pics done...the list goes on and on. I don't consider myself as a rule an unthankful person but it is always good to be reminded to cherish my moments with them and the fact that God used this older lady to remind me was also a reminder of how fast life goes. So...that was last Thursday...
So, that brings me to today. Everyone knows I am a freak when it comes to making my kids "firsts" memorable for all. For some reason, I love to celebrate the little firsts in life. Well, I read a book a couple months back. Fiction. Christian novel. Not sure which book it was but there was a lady dying of cancer in the book who had 5 kids grown. On her death bed, she was conversing with her husband and taking stock of her life. She talked about the only thing she wished could be different about life was that we be able to know and remember a "last". Such as the "last" time your kids needs their comfort item (blankie, bear) for bed..the "last" time you get to watch Regis and Kelly before you have your first baby and never can watch alone. (that was my example). In life, we are quick to remember the "first" time a child walks but what about the "last" time they crawled???? So today.... Eva is going to the back yard bible club here at our complex. It is actually indoors and not really anywhere near a backyard. I thought I would be staying with her but no other parents are staying and they had more workers than kids so I felt pretty secure in leaving her. Well, Sam and I had to go to the big Walmart so, when we came back I knew it would be their snack time and they would be sitting outside eating their popscicles. Paranoid Mama syndrome kicked in so I decided to drive by and make sure she was still okay. She was sitting under a treeish bush and at first didn't see me. I parked and watched her sort of thru the bushes from my car. Well, of course she spotted me. I didn't want her to come running but I had to acknowledge her so I waved excitedly. So, then she starts to SCREAM with elation..."hey guys, that's MY mama" "look, its' MY mama" "HEY MAMA!!!"...as if to say "my mama is the most precious, important, wonderful, loving, pretty, sweet, nurturing, caring person in the whole world." Only one little boy even payed her attention and looked my way. But she was so proud that I am her mama that she had to shout. Of course, my heart melted. The kids went in and I waved bye but I just sat there and savored the moment pondering on the thoughts of lately. One day there will be a time when she won't get so excited to see me. She will at some point even be embarrassed. We have no way of knowing when a lot of "lasts" like this one will happen. When will be the last time Eva asks to snuggle before bed? When will be the last time Sam crawls and I forget because I am so excited he is walking? When will be the last time that my kids have the innocence of seeing me walk into a room and all else in the world dims because mama is here now? I do love the seasons of life but sometimes, it is hard to tell when one starts and the other ends and all of a sudden you " wake up" and you are in a new season and wonder how you got here. My prayer today is that my husband and I continually remember to slow down, love on each other, love on God, love on our kids and savor the moments of their ever changing stages. One day, I will look back and wonder where all the "lasts" went.
