It is no trite saying when older folks tell young parents “Enjoy them while they are little, it goes by so fast!” That is the truth, plain and simple. This is my baby girl, Sophia, who today celebrates her 24th Birthday! Yesterday I was holding HER baby girl smiling at her just like this, amazed and mesmerized by the miracle and beauty of babies. Who knew when I held this happy, sweet baby that the years would indeed fly by and soon I’d be holding my granddaughter?
I don’t know why it is so hard for me to believe until I come across a picture like this that brings back so many good memories of our family. It wasn’t perfect mind you. I mean look at that bonnet I put on her! I was so young and didn’t know how much learning was ahead of me. I worried too much about the bad things that could happen to these tiny miracles entrusted to our care or the mistakes I’d make but it helped me learn to pray. I came to appreciate my parents more when I became one too. Now that I am a grandma I am reliving so many moments I cherished but that time had faded by holding not just one but two granddaughters born this year, the other born to my eldest son and daughter-in-law this summer. Jason and his brother, Corey, will soon celebrate their 28th and 26th birthdays…will I ever get accustomed to the fact that my babies are grown and yet I still think of them as my babies?
All the tough stuff of parenting and babyhood blurs into a glimpse like this one that is full of love and gratitude for life’s blessings. Parenting and grand-parenting are experiences that happens to millions but when it happens to you it is a game changer in the best way possible. A new perspective, deep contentment, and indescribable joy are the everlasting gifts that surpass the dirty diapers, the sleepless nights, the depleted energy from chasing a toddler around all day. One of the surprising joys of grand-parenting, however, is that you get to give them back to their mamas so you can get some much needed rest!
Snippets and Snatches 