What? Am I a little late to the party?? The truth is…I really hate making New Year’s resolutions. I’m not sure if it’s just the non-conformist in me or what, but you will never find me with a list in hand of things I want to change on January 1st.
But all of January I’ve had this recurring thought: be there.
Let me explain. This year has been difficult for me. I feel like, out of the blue, my kids are all grown up. I’ve watched my 13-year-old walk into middle school and almost teared up on more than one occasion wondering when exactly did he turn the corner from being my little boy to a young man.
Maybe because he is my oldest and I’ve been busy with little siblings I didn’t see it happen? And then the thought strikes me that he’ll be in HIGH SCHOOL next year, driving in 2 years…and out on his own in 5 years. 5 YEARS! That’s nothing!
So I’ve decided to “be there” as much as possible for all my kids . That means, for me, no blogging, editing photos, or scheduling photo sessions when my kids are home. It means not reading books (this is a hard one!) or wasting time on the computer when they are right there in the room with me. It means saying “Sure…let’s do it” more than “Just a minute… as soon as I’m done with __________.”
It means playing Guitar Hero with them, even though I’m embarrassingly terrible at it. Reading books with them before bedtime. Watching T.V. shows that they want to watch and even being as genuinely interested in it as possible. Going to all their games and watching, even when they aren’t playing (I watch when they are playing, but usually read a book when they aren’t. They always call me on this!). It means playing Guess Who and Candyland and Uno over and over, and enjoying every minute.
It means not letting the moments pass me by. I’m not talking about the big, life changing moments here, but the little, day-to-day moments. I want to make sure I’m building memories with them every day, the ones that shape and mold what they will remember about their childhood. And that they know they are the most important thing in my life — that everything and everyone else takes the backseat to them.
Look for Monday Musings that talk about my “being there” experiences…written once they are asleep, of course.
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