It Won't Be Like this for Long

There are days when being a mom is hard, very hard. Those days are long, frustrating and trying. The household chores, errands, and parenting duties seem endless and the day can stretch long before you. You sit counting down the hours until nap time and scream in frustration when the kids nap for a shorter period than usual. I find myself willing those days away and when they are over I feel guilty and wish them back

Those days are usually followed by a day of realization. That your kids are growing up, and that this season will not last forever. I thought the months that followed the birth of Ethan dragged on. But in truth they passed by in the blink of an eye. I find myself looking at Ethan every day, willing him to shrink  in size. To lay on me forever and sleep. Some days I can so vividly recall those first few days with him at the hospital and bringing him home that I start smelling his newborn baby smell around the house. I have to stop and look at him, walking and crawling around to visually see that he is not my baby baby anymore. And Gianna, I thought I had years before the dramatics, the eye rolls, the No Mommy and the tantrum. But those years are fast upon us and as difficult as they can be to maneuver and figure out, they are a sure sign that my little girl is growing up, growing into her personality and struggling to become independent and figure out who she is. I know it won't be long before Ethan is in the toddler years. I cant even bear to think that in 1.5 more years Gianna will be in VPK. School, all day! I can't even believe it. While the days seem long now, I know they will seem endless when she is at school. I know I will be watching the clock, waiting for my little girl to come home. And when Ethan goes to school the year after her, my house will feel empty. It wil be cleaner than usual, errands will get done quickly and all the me time I barely get now will be in abundance. But I know something will be missing. And don't even get me thinking about them leaving for college. I now think the hardest part about having kids so close in age means that when one leaves for college the other will be shortly behind. I won't get a few years with the youngest child at home. ( Hmm, maybe this will be a convincing reason to get the hubby to agree to a third kiddo)

But what I'm trying to say this post of emotional ranting is that although the little years seem long, they are oh so short. As cluttered as your living room feels with baby swings, bouncers and walking toys in a year or two they will be replaced with toys that signify the growth of your child. And in  a few years after that there will be no toys cluttering the living room! In fact, our kids will not want to be in the living room at all. They willbe avoiding us and staying in their rooms talking on the phone and doing all sorts of teenager things. The hugs and kisses they so freely ask for and give will be replaced by sighs of embarrassment and all the cute little baby clothes will be replaced by who the heck knows what during our kids teenage years. So on the days where I am frustrated and spent I picture a few years from now when the kids are at school and vow to cherish every day as much as possible. That won't always happen I know. There will always be a house that needs to be cleaned, errands that need to be run, dinner that needs to be made and of course I need to get those things done. But in the grand scheme of things this is only a season. And like seasons do they change quickly and before you know it you are onto the next one. 

I saw this on pinterest and this really put things in perspective