New Milestones

Smiling,
           Sitting Up,
                           Standing,
                                            Crawling,
                                                            1st Solid Food,
                                                                                    Walking,
                                                                                                 Running,
                                                                                                              Falling,
                                                                                                                           Talking....

SO many milestones when our kids are babies.  They are new, and everything they do is new and exciting and "milestone" worthy.  I snapped pictures, and wrote in baby books all the details of each cherished moment. I shared the "good news" with anyone that would listen and clapped and showed sheer bliss on my face so he would know how proud mommy was.

However, I was recently hit hard with what I consider a new kind of  milestone....
It was Christmas Eve and we were enjoying a fun filled visit Grandma's house and he got one of his terrible headaches.  When I noticed just how bad he was feeling, I went to sweep him away to quiet and safety where he could recover.  That is when it hit me....I could no longer carry or even remotely sweep this....this,.....young man anywhere!  I made a valiant effort and moved a few steps, but it wasn't going to happen.

I can't carry my "baby" anymore!!!

I have to admit it made me feel a little lonely in a strange way.  Why was this "milestone" making me a little sad instead of happy?  Why did I feel it a moment to be dreaded instead of celebrated?  What makes it different than crawling or smiling for the first time?

It was a harsh reminder of how fast time is going.  I looked back on the times such as the one in this picture when I would hardly let this little baby out of my arms.  It reminded me that there will be less and less ways that I can step in, assist and make everything better.  He had to walk himself over to where he could rest, he had to do the work.  He wasn't alone, I stayed by his side, but the effort becomes his own.  He secretly loves the fact that he is "too big to carry" and I think secretly I might as well.  He is on his way to becoming a man who will have responsibilities of his own one day. I want that for him and desire for him to mature and be prepared for the day to"leave his mother and father."  So, I decided to go ahead and mark this down, celebrate it, and share about it here because it is an important moment.  I decided not to be sad at all, but to look forward to all he has to do with the life in front of him and enjoy my role each step of the way.

But....I will continue to take what I can get...even the head turned the side, run into me kind of hugs and enjoy every minute that I have the pleasure and honor of preparing this guy for "that day."

....And maybe I'll do more push-ups:)

Thanksgiving in January...

      I don't think it would be going out on a limb to say that personal handwritten thank you notes are becoming a "lost art" these days, and that makes me sad.  I remember as a child being instructed to always send a thank you for any appropriate occasion including birthdays and Christmas.  I'm sure I rolled my eyes and thought it was stupid sometimes, especially the older I got.  However, I realize that it instilled in my heart a spirit of gratefulness that I want to pass on to my kids.  Some say it could become routine, or mundane, but        I believe it forces me to stop and think about what I received and the person who blessed me with that something.
     Now that I am older and more often a giver, I realize how much I enjoy receiving a thank you note too.   I don't expect it and don't want to give for that reason, but it is nice to be thought of "back" in a way.  I have given to many birthdays, graduations, and even weddings that have gone without acknowledgement or gratitude and that is ok, but sad.  I believe each generation is being raised with a higher level of "entitlement" and I hate to see that too.
     So....my boys will write hand written thank you notes for a long time and so far they haven't rolled their eyes at me once.  They don't know that "all kids" don't have to do this, I'm sure:) I have them make a list in their homeschool planner in the notes section and I actually will put one a day on their weekly schedule page.  I'm sure I will love having these lists as well as memories of the year they got  _____! If they have handwriting, I even let them have the day off, which they get excited about.  Lately as you can see in the picture above, they have been getting very creative with their notes and I am enjoying seeing them really trying to hard to make them special for that special someone!