Making Each Moment Count…When Time Seems to be Flying

I blinked…yep…my baby is now 3 months old and I can’t even believe it. This is our last child so, as you can imagine, we are savoring each and every minute, every coo, every milestone…as it is our last to experience until our grand-babies are born. I know, a little too sentimental, right?!? Not when you know it is your last time to experience these things.

I can’t help but to grieve a bit when it comes to our last child. It can be hard as a parent to watch the days tick by quickly and feel out of control as they are growing more quickly than you are comfortable with. We have made it a point to make each moment count, not just with our last child but all three girls. The first two go-arounds we didn’t savor time, I got caught in the craziness of constant play dates and activities, and we certainly stayed BUSY! This go-around has been a different story. My calendar is more clear, I don’t mind staying home and just being mommy for a while, I watch my kids nap (I truly love just watching them sleep), and I am more focused on the relationship I am creating with my kids.

I know many people work and don’t have an opportunity to watch their kids nap or stay home and keep the schedule clear so I have created a list of things you can do as a family, as parents, etc. to make every moment count with your kids…because before you know it, they will be off making their own memories with their own kids and you will have wished time had slowed down.

1. Put the electronics away and PLAY together…play games, tea party, Barbies, Power Rangers, Batman, etc. Or…Have a mock wedding with the man you intend to marry someday…DADDY! Seriously melts my heart!!!
2. READ, read, ReAd, rEaD to your children
3. EAT as a family at the kitchen table
4. Put your kids to bed 15 minutes earlier than normal with the intention of laying with them and chatting about life, their dreams, goals, school, etc.
5. SING together and be silly…don’t take life too seriously…it goes too quickly, why not have FUN!
6. PRAY together as a family…pray for yourselves, pray for others, pray with pure intentions
7. Do service projects together (rake the neighbors lawn, bless a family in need, work a soup kitchen together, etc.) making sure to BLESS OTHERS.
8. Say,”I Love You” DAILY! If you aren’t sure if you said it, say it again! We all want to feel loved but our kids want to know and be reassured that we love them unconditionally.
9. BE PRESENT (put the phone away, turn the TV off, come home from work an hour early sometimes…later in life you won’t wish you had worked more…TRUST ME)
10.  TAKE VACATIONS (even if the budget doesn’t quite match the vacation you want to take…GO! Vacations don’t have to be expensive and break the bank. Some “cheap” mini-vacations can be: Go camping, spend the night at a hotel with a pool and game room, pitch a tent in the backyard and vacation there, visit family and stay with them, etc.