Picture the inside of a clock, with all its gears working in teams to keep the time. Sometimes, it feels like life is going smoothly like that. Other times, it feels like time may be moving a little bit too fast…which has been the case for me over the past three months.
The last three months have brought about changes in my life. They aren’t bad changes, they are changes that come with reasons to celebrate growth. It’s just that as a full-time working mom, I may not have slowed down to truly observe, mark, and/or take notes in my kids’ journals to remember them.
So, here I am, taking a moment to slow down and commemorate three milestones and share them with you.
Milestone #1: The baby turned 1 year old in April!! (Well, I guess she’s not a baby anymore.) I remember with my first, 1 year seemed to be the magical turning point when everything started getting easier. So far, so good. She has started sleeping through the night, and she is getting steadier on her feet – steady enough to start taking little steps.
I weaned her from breastfeeding shortly after her first birthday and it went way better than I expected. The only problem now is that my body is in a state of hormonal chaos. I feel like a teenager all broken out in acne…and I’m sure my two year menstruation hiatus will soon be coming to an end 🙁
Milestone #2: I turned a year older in May. When you consider the alternative (being six feet under), it’s a great thing, right? I don’t want to sound ungrateful for my health, my family, a job I love…it’s just that I find that birthdays aren’t as exciting to look forward to as one’s age gets higher and closer to…gasp! 40!!
I had a lovely day though. I had some time for myself at the salon as well as some time with my girls on a walk and at the park. My husband and girls took me out for kaiten sushi and we had a great time. It was a fun way to end the day.
Milestone #3: My oldest “graduated” from pre-school and started summer camp! I remember when we first started at her childcare center, being in the classrooms on the second floor with the pre-schoolers always seemed so far away (the infant rooms, waddlers and toddlers are all on the first floor). Then, she moved up there two years ago.
Two years ago she was shy, clingy, as well as, the smallest and youngest in her pre-school class…and now she has transformed into a more social and independent “big girl”, as she likes to be referred to as.
As I was watching her walk out the door the first day of summer camp, with her backpack and lunchbox, hair in ponytails, bouncing with excitement, I said to myself, where did my baby go?! Well, I thought I said it to myself, but apparently I said it out loud because she then turned around and said, “What momma, you want me to be a baby again?! Why?” My baby, I mean my big girl, will turn 5 this summer.
My big girl will start Kindergarten in the fall. Come September, I’ll have to remember to let go of the little bit of fear in me and celebrate, because change is inevitable, and it’s part of living. Everyone deals with these types of events in different ways…I think I just need to acknowledge the milestone, along with the change(s) it brings in order to accept it and carry on.
Does anyone remember the show The Wonder Years? In closing, I’d like to leave you with a quote from the show that rings true to me as I finish this post…
“Growing up is never easy. You hold on to things that were. You wonder what’s to come. But that night, I think we knew it was time to let go of what had been, and look ahead to what would be. Other days. New days. Days to come.”
What about you – how do you handle milestones in your life and your children’s lives?
This is an original post for World Moms Blog by Eva Fannon. Eva can be found on Twitter @evafannon.
Photo credit to Bruno Cunha http://www.flickr.com/photos/brucunha/3028093228/. This photo has a creative commons attribute license.
Eva Fannon (USA)
Eva Fannon is a working mom who lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her hubby and two girls. She was born and raised on the east coast and followed her husband out west when he got a job offer that he couldn't refuse. Eva has always been a planner, so it took her a while to accept that no matter how much you plan and prepare, being a mom means a new and different state of "normal". Despite the craziness on most weekday mornings (getting a family of four out the door in time for work and school is no easy task!), she wouldn't trade being a mother for anything in the world. She and her husband are working on introducing the girls to the things they love - travel, the great outdoors, and enjoying time with family and friends. Eva can be found on Twitter @evafannon.
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They do grow up fast, don’t they?
My son will be 1 1/2 years old in 2 weeks. Gosh, that sounds older than 18 months though it’s the same! He’s just started pronouncing words properly, although he’s been babbling since he was 11 months old. Somehow that has transformed him from baby to boy. Just like that. Before we know it, he’ll be stringing words together, talking in sentences and ohmygosh going to school and……sigh.
Love the Wonder Years quote! So true.
People always tell you when you first have a baby that time will go fast and treasure every moment, but somehow that didn’t register for me. I am learning to enjoy all of the moments – such as you mention…going from babble to words.
On a related note, the other thing that changes is their cute little toddler voice. I was watching a video of my big girl when she was about 2 yo and her voice was SO cute! Enjoy that too! Thanks for reading Alison 🙂
Oh how I loved the Wonder Years. Funny, I never thought I could use those words to describe our (my family’s ) journey. But it is fitting.
Your 3rd milestone hits home with me, now that I have 2 older and one infant…I have seen my girls go through the ropes, and I never thought I would do it again.
I was think a few days ago that we watch our children grow, but they also watch us growing up before their eyes…they just don’t know we, and we don’t appreciate it.
Letting go of the fear’ is the hardest part. I hope your little ones walk yo through the changes, so that you can breathe a big sigh of relief and yes, CELEBRATE the milestones.
Thank you for this great post…I am reflecting as I write this comment 😀
Thanks for being there with me Salma! Funny what you say about kids watching their parents grow..you’ve made me reflect. The first time I registered how old my mom was, I was about 5 years old. And in my mind, she still looks as youthful to me as she was then. It’s when I look at pictures that I see my parents are aging right along with me. I have seen them “grow” and “mature” as parents…and I LOVE the open relationship I have with them. Thanks for making me think about that!
Great post Eva! I agree it seems like once you have children your life goes on high speed. It is hard to believe I’ve been at home for seven years and am almost forty too! But I wouldn’t trade it for a thing! 🙂 I just wish things could slow down!
Totally agree thirdeyemom…wouldn’t change it for anything…and yes, I wish things would slow down too! Or had “I Dream Of Genie’s” ability to stop time 🙂
Ok Eva. We MUST get together! Not only are we probably a 20 minute drive away from each other, but our kids are the same age and experiencing the same milestones! My older son (5 yrs) just graduated preschool and will start Kindergarten in the fall. I just can’ t believe how he has become this amazing little boy in such a short time! And my younger boy just turned 1 in March. He is already walking, saying “Mom” and “no” and “uh-oh”, and he can climb anything! Time is flying so fast, and I try to take tons of pictures and soak up every last moment of it. I do feel bummed sometimes that it is moving so quickly, but the present stages are so fun too. I love seeing what type of little people they are becoming….what interests them and how they engage with the world. It is truly remarkable. So let’s schedule a time to talk about this together in person soon!
Tara, let’s do it! I didn’t realize your kids were about the same age as mine…it would be a fun playdate 🙂
My son started kindergarten last year and I had such a hard time, although I hid it from him the best I could. I kept reminding myself of the quote about giving our kids roots and wings. Well, my baby flew this year! He rocked kindergarten and I was one happy Mommy!! I have one more year until my daughters starts kindergarten and I am holding on to her tightly!! I swear she was just born, but here she is, 4 years old….too fast.
I just wanted you to know that I understand how you are feeling. The milestones are cause to celebrate, but they sure do come with some nostalgia.
Thanks for your comment Maggie. Since my oldest has been in childcare and pre-school, I guess I thought the transition to kindergarten would be easier. The difference is that she has been onsite at work…and I have the liberty of visiting when ever I want, lingering/hanging out at drop off or pick up…it’s fun to watch her engage with her classmates and talk to the teachers about how the day went! My understanding with kindergarten is that I have to drop her off in the school yard…and that will be hard (for me!).
Great post Eva! My oldest daughter turned 6-years-old two weeks ago. It was a hard birthday for me to swallow. I always knew 6 would be tough for me, it is the year that you have to start counting your age on a second hand… the year that you really get the wake up call that your child is growing, so fast. My youngest daughter turns 3 in Sept. I think that birthday will be tough for me, too. Any child under 2 years old seems so little to me, but 3, well it just seems like you cross the barrier between toddler and little kid. Knowing my 2-year-old is my last, it is quite emotional for me.
And, I agree with you about being an adult and celebrating your birthday. They are certainly milestones to celebrate but the pizzazz of a birthday faded for me after childhood. I so enjoy spoiling my children on their birthdays! I want them to grow up feeling like I made their day so special for them. In fact, my next post for WMB is on planning kids birthday parties!
Oh no Courtney, I hadn’t thought about 6 being that transition from counting on one hand to two – you’re SO right about that being tough to swallow! Even last night, my big girl was laying with my baby girl side-by-side in bed, and I just kept thinking how BIG she looked!
As for 3, there is that change in maturity and transition from toddler to little kid. We always do something special to recognize birthdays, but with my oldest, her first birthday party with friends was at 3.
I can’t wait to read about your birthday parties post – the post on your blog about the Freda party was pretty impressive!! I wish you lived closer so you could help me with my party planning 🙂
Eva,
What a great idea — to print your posts for your baby journal. Something to give your girls when they’re older, or when they are about to become moms themselves! So sweet.
I’ve always celebrated the milestones with my first daughter — from congratulating her when she grew out of her newborn clothes on up! She has become independent, and I wonder if my attitude helped that. I didn’t try to keep her little. The second time around with my second, I am even more aware of this — I want to make sure I treat them both the same way! (Ok, similar. It would be impossible to treat them the same EXACT way!)
You motivated me to update my kids’ journal. It really needed an update!! 🙂
Jen Burden 🙂
Hi Jen,
With my first, I had an Anne Geddes day planner and I would record milestones the first year she was born. When the calendar year ended, I couldn’t find another Anne Geddes one, so I just started keeping a journal in a Word file. Now I have one for each of them. And when they say or do funny things and reach a milestone, I write them a little note in it. It’s so much fun and I can’t wait to hear what they think about it when they get older 🙂
And on doing everything the same for both….I CONSTANTLY think about that! I feel like I don’t want to deprive the youngest of an experience the oldest got to have….which is why I breastfed both for a year. I think the next thing is doing a mommy & me swim class with the youngest – ugh! the thought of getting into a bathing suit 🙁
I have something that I update on my computer, too. But, I just remembered. I wrote a few letters to my daughter, including one to open before she gives birth (if she gives birth!). I plan to be around for it all, but I thought my thoughts just after I was going through the same experience would be different, than me telling her things years later. I have to get writing for my baby daughter now!
I feel the same need to do the same for both!
As for the bathing suit — confidence is everything. Hold your head high! (at least that’s what I keep telling myself!)
Jen 🙂
It really does all go by way too fast, doesn’t it? I love that you commemorated three big milestones for the year- and with such lovely words, too!
As for me and embracing change? Still working on it! 🙂
Thanks Galit! “embracing” is a strong and difficult word when combined with “change”, isn’t it 😉
Great post! And timely too…Today was the last day of preschool for my kids and I found myself a little bit teary when I picked them up and thought about how far they’ve come since their very first day many months ago. I celebrate these milestones but feel nostalgic too. Love the Wonder Years quote (can ever hear the narrator!)
Thanks Shaula. It’s funny because on my daughter’s last day of pre-school, I was so teary eyed. I asked her if she was sad about being done. She said “No! I’m excited because now I get to go to summer camp!!” Made me realize these transitions and milestones are harder on me than they are on her – LOL!
Eva…I swear I can write a decent comment, lol. I just need to not blog when I am nursing.
I get what you mean about the photographs and looking back years later. We are moving and I just looked through some photographs and even hubby and I look completely different than I expected. I was too sad to go through the many photos of the kids, but for some reason I thought back to what I said here about the children watching us grow.
Gosh those milestones just sneak up on you don’t they Eva? I am facing my baby turning two in a few months and I can’t work out if I am happy about it (his increased independence and more freedom for me) or sad (this is the end of those tiny little arms sneaking around my neck for a cuddle). I heard once that parenting is long-days and short-years – says it all really, don’t you think?