I’m Gonna Miss This

Have you ever heard the song “You’re Gonna Miss This” by Trace Adkins? 

It’s been a while for me.  Today I heard it play on the radio and it got me thinking. 

What am I going to miss when my kids are grown?  What will I wish I had looked at in a different light? 

Will I miss the fights that the girls have every. single. day?  Or the fact that C likes to make each of his sisters cry at some point of every day? 

Probably not. 

But the list of things I will not miss is a heck of a lot shorter than the list of things I will miss.  Some of it is stuff that really bothers me on a daily basis but after hearing that song again, I realize they truly are the little things that I need to cherish and treasure.  The little things I get irritated by are some of the things I love the most. 

I remember when C was sick a few months ago… really sick!  He didn’t want to do anything but sit.  If you know my C, you know that is NOT like him at all!  He’s the busiest three-year-old you will ever meet.  The illness lasted a few days and for the first day, I quite enjoyed his calmness.  I wasn’t having to constantly be on my toes worrying about where he was and what he was doing.  All he wanted was to be held, his back tickled, and to watch movies.  It was a nice break

By the second day, when he still wasn’t back to his overly energetic self, I began to worry.  And by the third day, I quite missed being on guard at any given moment.   He just wasn’t C for those days and I missed him!

Day four was a turnaround for C and he was up and movin’ again.  Not back to 100% but enough that I was definitely back on my feet!  And on day five, I was wishing for the first day of illness again.  Not the illness itself, the calmness. 

Isn’t that how it goes? 

Anthony is always reciting this rhyme {poem?}:

 

By rule, man’s a fool.

When it’s hot he wants it cool,

When it’s cool he wants it hot,

Never wanting what he’s got.

By rule, man’s a fool.

 

So, I started thinking of all the things that I love about my kids right now that I will miss {or already miss} when they’ve all moved away, have spouses, families, and lives of their own.  Here’s what I’ve come up with so far…

 

---I’ll miss the way B gets excited for bed and grabs a piece of his blanket in a wad, shoves the wad into his mouth, rolls over to his side and falls asleep.

---C’s ever working mind.  I hope that never goes away.

---H’s hugs.  This is something I get irritated at sometimes because I have a large bubble {personal space} and she just plain doesn’t have a bubble at all!  She shows her love through physical touch.  I will miss that when she gets too big to want to hug her ol’ mom anymore. 

---I’m gonna miss A’s little giggle.  I’m sure she’ll always giggle but it won’t be her ‘little girl giggle’ anymore.  It’s infectious and I love it!

---K has a way of breaking your heart when she’s hurt.  You can just see the hurt in her eyes and I will miss the way she penetrates into my heart.  Again, not something that will necessarily go away, just won’t be the same. 

---Every one of their cute little faces!



 

---I’ll miss getting B off the counter 53 times a day because he’s learned how to use the bar stool as a ladder.  Following in his brother’s footsteps.  And I’ll especially miss this face he gets when he does it… he knows it’s a no-no!



 

---I’ll also miss the older brother’s monkey antics!  {And his cute little bum, too!}



 

---Their voices, right now, the way they are. {I already miss the girls’ little chipmunk voices.}

---All the silly moments I get to share with them because I’m their mom.

 

 

---Turning on the radio or a cd and dancing like nobody’s watching!  They love it!

---Christmas mornings.

---K’s whole wheat waffles every Friday morning, topped with REAL maple syrup.

---Baby kisses, the kind where they try to eat your face.



 

 

---The way A and H get along… MOST of the time. 

---Watching fireworks out the window just before bedtime.



 

---Peacemaker H… she’s always trying to break up the fights between K and A.

---“Look Mom!  Look what I can do!”

---I’m gonna miss C waking up from naps with painted fingernails… PINK painted fingernails.  Or covered in marker.



 

---Listening to the girls belt out Johnny Cash songs in the car. 

---Staying up until 2:00 in the morning for some ‘me’ time.

---Summer fun out in the yard.



 

---Sleep outs in the living room.

---Hectic Sunday mornings.

---Homeschooling.

---I’m gonna miss their childhood imaginations. 

---Cat’s Cradle and other discoveries.



 

---“Mom, C ruined the puzzle and I was almost done with it!”  **Sobs**  {just happened today} Only a 399 piece puzzle.  K had worked hard on it all day long.

---“You’re the best mom, ever!”  {or the “best cook”… I like that one too.}

---I’ll miss the way the girls hair NEVER looks brushed.  And the way the two little girls think their hair is long enough to do whatever style they want no matter how many times I tell them it isn’t long enough for a bun.

---I'm gonna miss C's love affair with milk and how he stops whatever he is doing when he gets a sippy cup.  He then has to grab a pillow and a blanket and lay on the couch in 'his spot' and savor the sippy.  It doesn't matter where we are.   

---I’ll miss the way that C idolizes his daddy. 



 

This is just a short list of things I will miss. 

What will you miss in  10 or 20 years about your life right now?  I don’t know what stage of life you’re in at the moment but I know things will be different 20 years from now.   I’d love to know…