The other day, I stumbled on this post by Mckmama. If you don’t know her, you should. She’s amazing. In one life altering post, she wrote all about savoring those small moments in life that pass by too quickly. Those moments that you forget to cherish, the ones that slip under the radar until they are gone. Kids grown up, moved away, moved on. This post made me stop, think, and change how I approach the most mundane tasks of our day.
Bath Time
One of the tasks that I’ve always dreaded is bath time and somehow I usually end up with this chore. At the end of the day, tired, grumpy and often overwhelmed the last thing I want to do prepare a bath for someone other than myself. But I do it anyway, because that’s what being a mother is about. I go through the motions and take a few minutes, while the kiddo is throwing soapy bubbles on the dry floor, to just slip away in my mind, to someplace quite, and dry.
But after reading Mckmama’s post, I learned to savor this moment. To take each small part of it and appreciate it for what it is. The giggles that come from pouring water over a sudsy head, eyes wide and unblinking. The two small hands creating huge waves that send toy ducks and penguins sailing to the other side of the tub. The cheers and “Good joooob” as basketballs are sunk in tub-sized hoops. The “cozy” time when I wrap the kiddo in a towel and in my arms and squeeze him as hard as I can, to shouts of “Again cozy!” These are the moments that I will take with me for the rest of my life. I stop, tuck them away in my mind and smile a sad kind of a smile. For I know that one day, he will grow up, and I’ll only be left with these memories.
Everyday Life
Now I’m making a huge effort to capture each ordinary moment that happens, and put it in a special place my heart and memory. Like the sweet way we rock back and forth together while reading “I’ll Love You Forever” all snuggled together on the couch. The heart warming way the kiddo has of cheering us on, no matter what we are doing. “Good job, Momma!” he exclaims as I throw something in the garbage. The joy and excitement that bursts out of him whenever Dad-oo returns from work, the store or just from being outside. The feel of giant toddler hugs, tiny arms wrapped around my neck, and funny little kisses before bedtime. These are the moments that define my relationship with my son. These are the moments that define me as a mother. And these are the moments that I will cherish for the rest of my life.
What are your favorite every day moments?
What are the things that you will miss most, when the kiddos are all grown? What moments will comfort you in the middle of the night?
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I completely agree with you. Our babies grow up so quickly. It’s so important to take a step back and savor the moments with them while you can. I love your bath time description. It’s the little things like this that define us a mommies, isn’t it? I wrote about one just last night on my blog.
You’re absolutely right. Sometimes it’s so hard to cherish the moments we’re in, but we should try. Just last night, I was battling Tori to get her jammies on, exhausted, tired of the screaming…but instead of getting mad, I zerberted her tummy. And she giggled…I’ll miss little moments like that.
.-= amber´s last blog ..Seventeen Years of Discovering the World Together. =-.
@amber, That’s the perfect example. I love zerberts and the giggles it causes. And I bet you (almost) forgot about the tears just a few moments earlier.
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