As time goes by

Today was a day where I said “your son needs to work on his manners” and “do you see your son jumping on the couch?” in moments of frazzle shortly before bedtime and then I had the audacity too say, after they were tucked quietly in bed: “are they not ridiculously cute?”.

So goes life with kids. One moment you feel like the old woman in the shoe:

“….who had so many children she didn’t know what to do.

So she gave them some broth without any bread

And spanked them all soundly and sent them to bed.”

...And the next, you just want to hold them close to you for a couple extra minutes and linger in the moment; that moment where they are just who they are; knowing with the knowledge of experience that little changes occur every day that grow them up to someone else. Sing them an extra song, look a little longer in their little baby eyes and sigh at the fleeting youth of the very young.

 

With the reality of an ever present forgetfulness that pushes old moments into the recesses of the mind and eventually, with enough new ones, nearly out, I would just like to remark on a few current trends in the kid department.

 

That I may remember:

Drake insists on using his own spoon to try and feed himself. Small wonder he eats little with this new development. The way I circumvent his new surge of the will to feed himself is to let him feed me. That boy cannot keep his mouth shut when he is trying to get me to open mine. The truth is, I notice I cannot keep my own mouth shut when I am trying to get him to open his. Touche`.

Mason comes over to give me a kiss, finds my lips and then just stays there looking in my eyes and kissing me. So funny. I smack him on his lips and say thank you to finish it off but if he is not satisfied with the length of the kiss he will try again. Love it.

Daphne telling me that I need to count to ten the other day. Wow!

Mason coming in to cuddle in the morning “I so cold” he says. He likes my pillow better than his dads so he always asks me to scoot my head over.

The way, when I practice my violin, if he is not busy outside, Mason will run to his room to get his little guitar and play with me. Or grab some unsharpened pencils and drum on whatever is available.

When I see Daphne sitting at the kitchen table, or out on the dog kennel, or in her room, or on the pot totally absorbed in a book; not just looking at the pictures, but reading. That is a feeling of accomplishment; I am actually teaching her to love to read, helping to open that world of fantasy and adventure.

Little Drake, when I tell him it is time to nurse and go to bed, will drop whatever he is doing to run to me. It doesn’t matter that he is in the middle of a raucous tussle on the floor with his dad and siblings or that he has small treasures in his hand that no amount of urging would otherwise induce him to surrender. He drops it all, gives kisses all around and pats my back as we go into the bedroom.

 

It doesn’t matter that I had to stand secretly in the kitchen eating chocolate to medicate a temporary stress or hide in the bathroom for five minutes to regain my peace and composure; when life holds this kind of magic, I bounce back pretty rapidly.... I have to, because time goes by and I just don't don't don't want to miss anything.

Prego with Daphne

 

"You must remember this
A kiss is just a kiss
A sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by"