Hold Tight

This summer has flown by faster than any I remember so far. Not necessarily a bad thing in terms of the weather... I mean, honestly, who would be sad to start coming back down in to the low 100's, or 90's for that matter?

It is, however, hard to accept in terms of the passage of time, which I know I wax poetic about quite frequently. However, with friends and family sending children away to various levels of school for the first time tomorrow, it really rings home how golden and fleeting these innocent, early years are with my own babies. I can still remember the first day at each new school I attended throughout my scholastic career, and my first night alone in the dorms as a college freshman still feels like yesterday.

I remember excitement, I remember anxiety, I remember fear, panic, and the intoxicating feeling of freedom... and I also remember how quickly all those feelings leveled out and things settled in to the new 'normal' of a new school year.

I can only imagine how hard it will be to be on the parenting end of those feelings in the all-too-near future. Thankfully, though, I still have a few beautiful, precious years left before paths start to diverge from the congruent family path we're plodding, and with every sunset, then sunrise, I vow to make the most of them.

I will enjoy the present. I will treasure every phase, stage, and milestone. I will look forward to the future, and be thankful for the past. I will learn from the hard stuff. I will learn from the easy stuff. My parents I will appreciate more with every hurtle, and my babies I will hold tight.