Pause....and take a deep breath

One night last week, after baths were given, pj's on, teeth brushed, and ready for bed, I found myself crashed on Parker's bed while Avery and Parker sat on Daddy's lap reading books, and Carter crawled around on the floor pushing buttons on anything that would make noise, and opening & closing the dresser drawer's in P's room, and his giggles of delight while doing so.  I had a million things to do downstairs before I could actually make it to bed, and when I sat up to give kisses and head downstairs I just sat there instead.  And literally, I took a deep breath and just soaked in the moment.  A precious moment.  A moment of thanksgiving.  A moment I don't want to forget that will be gone before I know it.  And so I've promised myself to take time to pause and enjoy these moments, if just for a moment or two....the dishes, the laundry, the email, the rush to get out the door on time....it all can wait.  So far, I'm doing pretty good, and here are some of my favorites:

Avery, dressed in her dance attire, black leotard & pink tights, pink-sequinned ballet flats, leaving dance class, balancing and walking on the curb..."hey, Mommy, watch me",....and so I do.  I pause, take a deep breath, and capture this moment in my heart.
And then there's Parker man, up in the playroom, playing very content with his trains and train table (I haven't heard a peep from him in hours), and as I go to the door to tell him it's time to come down for lunch....I pause, and just watch him play.  He's such a little boy.
At naptime and/or bedtime, instead of just laying Carter in his crib (which I'm so thankful I can do), sitting down, snuggling and rocking him to sleep.  This one is funny, though, because he usually reaches out for his crib.  So I really do take advantage of it when I can.
Before waking them up in the morning, pausing and just watching them sleep for a moment.  It's not often that they are still enough to look at their sweet little features.  Taking a moment to pray over them.
Sitting on the couch while Daddy plays "chase" with A & P, just watching & listening.  Parker loves to say "you can't catch me, ha, ha, ha", and Avery is fast!  And if Shane isn't holding Carter, then he's crawling around on the floor trying to keep up, while I'm shouting "watch out for Carter!"
I know it sounds silly, but just turning around and seeing them all 3 in their carseats, side by side, grinning at me when I turn around to take a peek.

So I continue to challenge myself to savor these moments during our days, not to take them so casually, and allow them to imprint this Mommy's heart.  (I know most of my posts seem to carry this common theme, but tis the season!)