There is no slowing it down.
And truly, I don't think I would if I could.
Because it's your time. Not mine.
And in the blink of an eye you'll be done.
Grown.
Gone.
I had my turn, and I remember how very slow it seemed.
Like I was never quite big enough, old enough, capable enough.
And then suddenly I was grown.
You will be too some soon day.
And to you it will feel like forever, and to me it will be but an instant that I replay in my mind before sleep.
Among the sweetest days.
Ordinary days spent together – laughing, reading, being.
As you grow.
Today we step outside to take your picture. Like every fall.
You slip into these adult-sized jackets, and suddenly I see you.
Growing up.
You are different from last year.
Your helpfulness. Your willingness. Your humor.
I see how your cheek bones have changed your face.
How your adult teeth reshape you into a near adolescent.
How at ease you are in your own skin.
I see you growing up before my eyes.
You're bigger.
You're older.
You're more capable in every way than you were just a year before.
And soon these young smiles and laughs will be just memories, dwelling inside of my heart.
Today will be what was.
And I will savor these memories forever.
I see you.
Growing up in an instant. Before my eyes.
You can see most of our series of annual photographs here.
Beautiful!
I love the saying, cherish yesterday, dream tomorrow and live today”.
“I see you.” That’s what it’s about, and the cheekbones. That’s what I notice too in my two. Those round faced faces, no more.
Beautiful!
And that, dear blogging friend, is pure beauty.
And that is what I, too, experience.
And if I could, I wouldn’t stop time either. Because it’s theirs.
Yes. <3
In a moment it shifts.
Lovely.
Oh, Rachel, your children are so beautiful. Just look at those eyes!
This year our daughter is nearly the age our son was when she was born. I’m a little befuddled as to how the time has passed so quickly but it has all the same.
Beautiful family! I love that last photo of them upside down 🙂
Rachel,
I love the second picture where they are looking into each others eyes. It’s so sweet. And it looks like they share a special connection with each other. 🙂
Love,
Taryn
It does go so fast. Yet, my family and I were so respectful and able to grow together that I lived at home until I was 29 and got married. Now it isn’t very many miles between us all–all of us had living close to home as a deal breaker in our marriages. 12 years in it still is working for us. Never would have dreamed of that years ago. So this can be one more thing that doesn’t have to be on our society’s schedule. I don’t see you pushing them out of the nest…just wanted you to know the timing can really vary…
I get oh so very sentimental about this growing up business! I am happy that my youngest is a one year old to soften the blow that I now have a thirteen year old. I am not ready, but at the same time…as you point out, that’s me, not them. This is honestly where I have dreamed to be my whole life. There are beautiful things to come though…girls night out…yoga for me and the oldest…bonding in a different way. I read somewhere a quote that stuck with me…that we are only in a parent/child relationship for a mere technical short 18 years. We are in an adult/adult relationship with our children for far far longer then that. It puts it all in perspective…and just how important it is to spend those fleeting years becoming connected respectful friends with our children. Big hugs mama. I bet you’ll keep those coats forever.
:)Lisa
Love these. Thank you for sharing with us every year!
So beautiful…so beautiful…
this is wonderful!
my two are like yours: one boy and my girl is a little younger. i like watching them play together and hearing them talk to each other. i have to say, i don’t know what i did with my time before they were here, and i’m not sure what i’ll do once they’ve gone. these are the best years of our lives! (and that includes *those* days)…all of it. my oldest is 7…and i already feel like it’s going by too fast.
My favorite, too!
They do. Like any sibling bond it’s up and down, but so often up…
Thanks, Beth!
I remember realizing that Lupine was our last, and wondering what the other chapters of life would be like. I watched her grow from a baby to a toddler to a girl, knowing that I’d never mother a preschool aged child again. I grieved it for a little while, and then got present with all the magic that is NOW. I expect the same will be true with each phase we pass through. Together. x
Thanks for sharing it with me!
Beautiful beautiful words and so true. They go together perfectly with these images.
Great article