My son turned two a few weeks ago. Today, as he got out of bed (by that I mean he climbed out of my bed) realized how grown up he looked… Where had my little mushball gone? When did this transformation take place? Then I started thinking about my own transformation. I started thinking about all the things that once seemed do important, that today take a back seat. Don’t get me wrong, there are still things I do for me, however, I have developed a more refined sense of what’s important. And, I’ve learned, that its OK to have your priorities change. It’s ok to not want to go out, to prefer dancing to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song than to watch the shows I’ve DVRed.
silly in sunglasses, ready for the sun!
They say your life changes as a mom, and it sure does— in the beginning I had some trouble with that. I missed having control over my life, I missed an inkling of free (=me) time. Now that two years have gone by, and Enzo is a running, talking, tantrum-throwing yet munchkin love fest, I no longer think that I’m missing something, I seize the opportunities I have to spend some quality time with him. Don’t get me wrong, I love the occasional (REALLY OCCASIONAL!!) mami-pedi, but I think I’ve come to terms that there’s only one of me, there’s 40 hours in the work week, and few hours to try to cram all the stuff I’d like to do in the little time I have! So, in the grand scheme of things, my vanity has gone out the window (holding on by a thread perhaps) me… Who wouldn’t have have been caught dead at a party without a manicure! And, confession, I hadn’t gotten a pedicure in months… I swear my feet were developing personalities of their own. (and my legs…that’s another story— at least it’s not summer yet…) but… who cares? Enzo will love me with chipped nail polish, or undone eyebrows… he would love me no matter what… (luckily so will my husband)
Tragedies like last week’s bombing reminded me that what is truly important (the kind of stuff I imagine flashes through our minds right before we die) are not the things that I used to think were so paramount in life—the little things that I cared so much about, like having perfectly shared eyebrows or a perfect pedicure. What I’ll remember will be those moments like cuddling with my LO, or playing fort, or reading the same stories over and over again… Because I won’t remember how many crappy toenails I had, but I will definitely remember the big smiles, the laughter, hugs and TAMOs* Enzo gave me. (* TE AMO=I love you)
Did you have an aha moment? Were there things that you missed that now you’ve just understood that they’re trivial?
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