Just a thought

Somewhere amidst the many "special offers" you get in the hospital/mail/email/Motherhood Maternity store I signed up for Parenting magazine. I don't remember doing this at all and I'm not really into getting magazines, but Jonathan insists that since I get that he gets to sign up for ESPN magazine (even though he reads every Parenting issue I get from cover to cover :) ). Still, I also devour them every month during my random spare minutes during the day and this month I read one of the most heartwarming things I've ever heard on parenting. It may just be touching to me because of the whole tantrum issue and the fact that Easton has been really sick for over a week and now I'm also sick, the house is a mess, and I'm going nuts not being able to go out because of the cold and now being able to play with friends because of those darn germs, but I thought I would share it anyway in case it might brighten someone else's day. The article is called "Learning from Liam" and is about a mother who was 41, already had 4 kids, and found out she was (suprise!) pregnant again. She talked about how she sobbed and didn't want to have another since her youngest was finally in preschool and she was actually getting time to herself to do things like volunteering, yoga classes, and swimming laps. She also knew how crazy people would think she was for having so many and for having a 15-year gap between her first and last (she should come to Utah) and so at first it was hard to accept. Well, a few things happened to help her put things into perspective and she talked about how now when her 14-year-old gives her trouble about curfews she remembers her as a little girl and knows it's just a stage, and also how when her new baby keeps her up all night she remembers how "the baby time of total contact is gone like a blink forever -- and I snuggle in and enjoy it." (Since the last two months have been a marathon of sleepless nights and sometimes days I really appreciated that.) Easton hasn't been too difficult and has really mostly been a lot of fun, but there are just some things I miss like sleep, getting to rest when I'm sick instead of still needing to take care of him, actually getting to read a whole book, and getting to run as long as I want instead of just until he decides he's done with the stroller. So what really touched me and helped me put my life into perspective is what she said at the end of her article: "I know that there is nothing better than being a mom. There will be time for myself later, when my children are grown. Right now, I'm busy having a wonderful time." From now on, when I'm playing with Easton, I'm going to forget all the really unimportant things that seem to fill my day and just enjoy having a really, truly, wonderful time.