☺ Ok, maybe not literally…but this week it struck me how quickly time flies by with our little ones and we need to appreciate every moment. My baby girl’s first birthday is coming at the end of the month and to be honest, it makes me sad. Yes, I love to see her growing and learning new things. But with the exception of the sleepless nights, I really miss the itty-bitty baby stage.

As I watch Melody grow, it makes me even more aware of how much my boys have grown up. My oldest son is nine years old which means in that many more years he’ll be headed off to college! So I find myself not pushing Melody to crawl or walk as soon as she can because her baby days will be gone far too quickly. I sometimes joke with people that with such a noisy house already, I’ve decided not to teach Melody to talk ☺ but when she finally said the word “Mama” on Christmas day I was overjoyed.

The picture at the top of this post is of Melody in her first diaper of many and I can’t believe how fast time has flown by and how much she has grown. In just one week’s time I’ve watched her learn how to sit herself up, cut two more teeth, clap for herself when she is excited, and finally figure out how to crawl forward instead of just backwards. She is also learning to pull up on things and I’m reliving that nervous mommy feeling all over again.

I also realized how lucky I am to be homeschooling our boys and having them here all the time. It has allowed them the chance to experience the same joys and excitement of watching Melody’s development that I have. It was so fun to watch them clap for her when we all realized that she sat up by herself and it wasn’t one of us doing it for her. They adore Melody and they still fight over whose turn it is to hold her or feed her. I originally thought the newness of a baby in the family would wear off but I am happy to say that it hasn’t.

My challenge to you today is to remember to appreciate the little things in life. Don’t encourage your kids to grow up too fast and don’t forget to take notice of even the smallest milestones.

Faith, your post brings back many memories for me, including those when you were first born. There’s always a tendency for a parent to dream of what their child will become when they grow up; however, sometimes we forget to “live in the moment” while they’re maturing. You are fortunate to have discovered this now.

If I could turn back the clock, there’s just a couple of things I would have done differently:

1. I would have tried to be more content with a messy house. Not an easy one for me. Had I known how quickly time flies and how quickly dust accumulates, I would have played more and cleaned less.
2. I wish I had known about homeschooling before you ever went to school; however, I couldn’t do something I had never heard about. By the time we brought you home for school in 7th grade, we got to spend time together as a family that we would have missed otherwise. I’m so thankful you’ve had the choice to have your children at home from the beginning. You won’t regret it.

So, while I wish I had done a few things differently, I really don’t have many regrets.

Yet, I do wish I could stop time for awhile…