“Cherish these moments,” older parents often remind young moms wrangling their little ones. “It all flies by!”
It’s the kind of advice that can make you roll your eyes when you’re knee-deep in the chaos of motherhood. Let’s be honest—when you’re juggling tantrums and diaper changes, the last thing you want is a reminder to savor it all. You’re trying your best, and let’s face it, sometimes it just plain isn’t enjoyable.
Yet, deep down, we all know time really does zoom past us. We see our kids growing and evolving right before our eyes. Every milestone reminds us that there’s no rewind button. No matter how much we might wish for it, kids never regress to being younger.
The only antidote to that bittersweet reality is to pause every now and then and truly soak in who our children are at this very moment.
I’ve started doing this during the most ordinary moments with my kids: when my 12-year-old is cozied up on the couch engrossed in a book, when my 7-year-old bursts into laughter watching a classic Winnie the Pooh video, or when my teenager and her friends amuse themselves by chatting in British accents just for kicks. These little snippets of their personalities always catch me off-guard when I take a moment to appreciate them. They’re just so amazing, my kids.
But let’s face it, we risk missing these fleeting moments if we blink. Life gets hectic, we drown in schedules, and kids dive into various activities. Before we know it, another year has slipped away.
It’s even tougher as they grow older. I have a beautiful baby book for my first child—a full-blown scrapbook packed with cute little baby rattles and smiling newborn photos. I had the luxury of cherishing those baby months and documenting them creatively. By the time my second child came along, I had a barely-filled photo album. And my third child? Let’s just say the pictures are all on a hard drive somewhere.
The reality is that time speeds up as our kids age, and if we don’t consciously hit pause to reflect, we risk missing out on some of the most rewarding aspects of being a parent.
Hitting “pause” is not only essential to truly experiencing your kids’ childhoods; it’s also crucial for your own well-being. As your children mature, so do you, but your growth often gets overshadowed by theirs. We all recognize the need to take time for ourselves, but we must also ensure that self-reflection is included in that “me time.”
The challenge, of course, lies in not getting so bogged down by daily routines that we forget to take a breather. It can feel like we’re driving on a busy highway with no exits. Naturally, we can’t just stop everything to smell the flowers.
However, we can strive to be present more often. We can take deep breaths amidst the chaos and hunt for beauty in the madness. We can cherish those brief moments of tranquility that come our way. Although we can’t halt the world, we can pause internally—hit the “pause” button on the torrent of thoughts and worries that flood our minds constantly and recognize how far we and our kids have come.
While we may not be able to treasure every single moment, we can appreciate more of the moments we do have if we actively make an effort to do so.
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Summary:
In the whirlwind of motherhood, it’s easy to forget to pause and appreciate the little moments with our children. Life accelerates as they grow, and we must intentionally take time to reflect and cherish these fleeting experiences. By hitting the ‘pause’ button, we can savor the beauty in the chaos of parenthood, leading to a more fulfilling journey for both us and our kids.