And Babies Don't Keep....

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

This seems to be a recurring theme as of late as I talk to friends and read blogs. The idea being that we are in some certain season of our life and that we should take joy and cherish that season. Spunky at Spunkyhomeschool Blog posted on the subject of season in her childrens life today. It was a fantastic reminder to go through the season which we are in with joy and gusto, embracing the new season to come while cherishing every moment of the one we are currently in.

And that is where I have trouble.

My baby girl is growing up. She didn't get my permission.

I know that I am going to sound like the stereotypical sappy mom when I say it seems like just yesterday we brought her home from the hospital and she was so tinny and so sleepy and just wanted to cuddle all day. And then one day I woke up and she was eating solid foods, getting teeth, walking, starting to talk....you get the idea. I don't want her to be big yet. It's not that I don't want her to grow up ever, I just didn't want it to happen so fast. The really depressing thing about this though is how much of this first year I spent not truly cherishing these moments. Overall I think I did a good job of enjoying those early days and stopping to laugh with her and to just enjoying her emerging personality. But now that this first season is almost over I realize all the times I could have slowed down more; all the times a TV show didn't need to be watched, a book didn't need to be read, a blog post didn't need to be written.

This is the way it is with most seasons of our life though I think. When we're single, we can't wait to get married and then those last days of singleness are upon us and we realize all the stuff we didn't do but could've. Then we are married but have no children, and we can't wait for the kids to be here, but those last fews months we soak up every moment of one on one time we can get. The same goes with high school and then college, college and then a job...you get the idea. We are always in one season of our life that is only going to last for what will seem like a blink of an eye and the next season will always be there before. And we must live in the tension of that. Enjoying the season we are in, loving it, soaking it up, not wishing it away but at the same time when it passes accept that passing and embrace the next season with joy and thanksgiving.

So, my baby girl is napping and the baby days are almost over. The napping ones probably are too for that matter. So I am going to go and cherish my hour of time to get things done with no one else up and about- not wishing for her to wake up to play, not dreading that she'll wake up before I get the laundry folded- but just knowing that to everything there is season. My mother in law gave me a beautiful cross stitch for the nursery when I was pregnant that had been given to her when she was pregnant with my husband. I'll end with it's words of wisdom:

Cleaning and dusting can wait till tomorrow
For babies grow up we've learned to our sorrow
So quiet down cobwebs and dust go to sleep
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.