My inspiration for this record of my days:

“The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less” -Anna Quindlen

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Simplicity

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I loved our first house.  We lived in a neighborhood full of young families.  The kids, all really young at the time, would play in the cul-de-sac while moms sat and talked in the shade.

Our back yard was perfect, too.  We had wall-to-wall grass, with a sandbox/playhouse in one corner and grapevines hanging from the back porch.

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I remember one day that we were all playing out in the back yard.  The water to the grapevines came on and started filling up the well around it.  One of the kids stooped down for a closer look, and called us all over to see.  The little bugs that lived at the base of the vine were all climbing up to escape the water.

We all lay there on the grass, on our stomachs, observing the bugs and cheering for their safety.  I remember thinking that I never wanted to forget that moment.  I was surrounded by my little ones, with nothing more important to do than lie in the grass together and watch the bugs.  Those moments are what makes life wonderful.

I wish things could always be that simple.

4 comments:

  1. What a beautiful post. I loved your old house and neigborhood too! But your new house has plenty of oportunities to make new memories!!!

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  2. What a beautiful post.

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  3. We miss you living in that house. The fun time playing on the street. The fun girls time. The fun "catch" over the wall for play time. And the thing that makes it even harder is that the people who live there now are loud, foul mouthed and party till all hours of the night! We really miss you guys!!!

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  4. I need to take the time to watch the bugs with my boy! The toddler years are so hard, but I know I'm gonna miss them when they're gone... so why can't I enjoy them more while they're here?

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