Several years ago I dreamed of becoming a stay-at-home mom. Many times I would find myself in my own little world wondering what it would be like to be a mom who could take my children to school, pick them up, be at parties, participate in the many various activities, and on the list goes....
Today was Cameron's Christmas party at school. With anticipation, I prepared for the fun morning with my dear sweet friend. As we prepared I prayed the children would find joy in the activities we planned. That was evident this morning. I enjoyed being with these sweet kiddos during the party and rekindled my love for the classroom on the other side of the teacher's desk-as a mommy. I loved seeing these children as they were, children, with no expectations other than having fun and enjoying celebrating Christmas and the magic it has to offer. Watching them in their conversations with each other brought joy to my heart since as a teacher oftentimes I saw the fun sides, but it was immediately crushed with the tasks that lay before us.....school, tests, academic expectations, numbers, grades, etc. Yes, all of those things matter, however, if we constantly focus on those "things," we miss the little things. These little things come to me in smiles, laughs, the way my children's eyes glisten when they look to me, the awe in their faces when they see something beautiful, the surprising look on their faces with an unexpected visit from a friend, the pure joy when they see a task completed that they never thought possible, the sweet, peaceful smile at the end of a long day when we say our prayers and exchange hugs and kisses.
One "little thing" that was (at the time) a little frustrating I will admit, was at the end of the Christmas party. My big 8 year old boy was sitting at his desk just coloring along......I bent over to say my goodbyes and try to steal a kiss on the cheek when I saw his sweet blue eyes and fluttering eyelashes look to me and say, "Mom, I don't want you to go." I immediately thought, oh no, what's going on.....
Then he continued on......saying the same thing several more times. I found it to be strange at the time because I have never experienced this, for I was always running from one crazy task to another not even picking up on these "little things." As I pulled away from school, I shared with my friend the sweet fact that our babies really do want us around and sometimes don't even care to hide those feelings. This, my friends, is what I give thanks for today.....that my little boy wants me to be around, hang out, and be there. I know that someday the tables will turn and life will get more complicated, but I can look back and see that it was the "little things" that mattered most.
As we spurred the children along in their bedtime routine I reminded Regan that it's the "little things" that are important not only to us, but to the little ones that follow in our footsteps. It's the ginormous stack of pillows that he wants to show me before bed that he's proud of.......the sweet little things! I pray that when he is grown I will continue to get phone calls celebrating the little things in his adult life.....a mother's dream come true.
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