Before I Had Kids...

Before I had kids,

I didn't stop to look at bugs.

Or to run through a perfect, grassy field.

I didn't visit construction sites,

and stare in wonder at the powerful machines doing their work.

I wasn't always on the lookout for the perfect climbing tree.

Oh yes, things got done much faster. I wasn't always a half hour late to everything. I didn't say, through gritted teeth, things like, "focus!" and "move more quickly please" and "didn't you just hear me say hurry up?!"

And yet...

There were a lot of things I missed out on.

Having kids has forced me to slow down. And like so many things about parenthood, it is both a blessing and a curse. (and I do try not to curse about it) I am still not great about being late, or stopping to climb a tree when we have to be somewhere, NOW. In the past, it would be hard for me to sit and watch an excavator dig a hole. Actually, it would have been painful. I am not good at sitting still, or even slowing down.

But I need to. I need to sit, and be and enjoy these tractors, these bugs, these trees, these moments. I am glad I had kids so they could teach me how.

I hope you get a chance to slow down this weekend and enjoy a simple pleasure--like a construction site! Or just a half hour in your backyard listening to the birds sing.

Happy weekend, everyone.