I know you’ve heard it.

You’ve probably heard it over and over again. From your mom, from the sweet old lady at the grocery store, and from your own experience:

“It goes by so fast!”

“The days are long, but the years are short!”

And yet…

If you’re like me, those phrases don’t seem to satisfy when you are in it.

In that seemingly long and trying season of parenting. Desperately waiting, hoping, and anticipating that sweet spot to come. Although I’m not exactly proud to say I have been yearning for this current season to pass, and the next one to start, I know I’m not alone.

I’ve sat with you mamas, and I’ve heard you each share that point in which the planets will align and life will finally become smoother.

When all the kids are finally in school…

When she starts sleeping through the night…

When he is finally potty trained…

When we can all sit successfully through a 3 hour car ride…

When they are all able to get dressed and make a sandwich…

Or maybe you’re a special needs mama, like me, and it sounds more like…

When he can begin speaking in sentences..

When he becomes more regulated, and I’ll be able to take him more places…

When therapy and IEPS and the strategies ease up just a bit…

(Just a quick shout out to you sweet mamas of kiddos with special needs-using every ounce of energy you have so your babies can have the best circumstances possible – you have all my love and admiration!)

And then…there’s another mama who speaks up as we all share our hopes for the next stage.

A mama who deeply understands how fast the time goes. She knows those sleepless nights bring just as much precious bonding, as they do fatigue. She’s realized, over time, that any minutes spent daydreaming about the next season means she’s missing something in the here and now. She gets that once they’re able to make a sandwich that they aren’t able to fit on her lap as well. Once the thing she had been wishing for finally does arrive, it won’t satisfy her like she thought it would. She’s wise, and kind, and gently warns me to spend less time fantasizing over the future and more time seeing each hurdle as an opportunity to know and enjoy my babies more.

What she says is striking, and challenging, and it makes sense to me…but it doesn’t take away the long days, the weary weeks of transition, and the desperate longing for some ease in our rhythms.

And yet…

It does make me gaze at their sweet faces a little longer. It has me listening to the sounds of their giggles a bit closer. It compels me to speak a little softer, say yes a bit more, and laugh more freely when everything is going awry. Most of all, it takes me to a place of gratitude. A place that says, no matter how hard this season in parenting is, it’s a gift, because these amazing children of mine are the most incredible gifts.