These moments are fleeting...

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to sing at our church. I was supposed to arrive early for sound check and a run-through with my friend Sarah who was performing an interpretive movement to the song I was singing. I decided to take K with me to lessen the load on Marcus having to get two kids up, dressed, fed, and to church on time. Now, there have been times that I have taken K in the past that have not gone so well. In fact, they've been down-right dreadful. Tantrums in the middle of the aisle, refusing to hand back the microphone so that I could sing, massive blowouts in her diaper that ruin her outfit...you get the picture.

Anyway, last Sunday I got K ready and let her wear her dress with the ballerinas on it (in honor of Sarah because K kept calling her a ballerina). We fixed her hair just as she liked and then put a big bow in. She was so proud of herself! When I had her come out and show Marcus she could hardly stand still she was so excited. We grabbed a breakfast bar for her to eat and were out the door. We parked at church and because it was so cold, I reached into her car seat, picked her up and starting running for the building. She stopped me immediately and said that she wanted to walk, so we ran (rather awkwardly carrying four different bags) hand in hand to get out of the cold.

During sound check I went up on stage and began singing and actually had forgotten that I had even brought K...she was so quiet! Then I felt a little hand reach up and grab mine. I looked down and there she was. She was standing quietly, swaying back and forth to the music, clutching her box of raisins with one hand, and holding mine with the other. She watched Sarah dance and was quiet the rest of the song. One line of the song I sang talks about how all that we have and all that we are is because of Christ and His love. As I tried to sing that and saw my sweet girl wanting nothing more than to stand on stage and hold my hand I was overwhelmed.

After we finished I walked K down to her Sunday School classroom. We passed several ladies in the church to which she greeted them with her very grown up way of saying "Good morning, hello!" As we continued walking to her class she looked up at me and said, "Hold my hand, Mommy, I want to hold your hand". What a sweet moment!~ What a sweet girl! Now, any of you who know me very well and know our family know that we have had some difficult moments with K. But what an amazing journey it has been! I am so grateful for the sweet little person she is becoming and for all that God is going to be able to do with her life.

Friends, if you are blessed enough to have children (or even for those of you who don't, but have grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, children in your church, or maybe a friend's kids), love them. These moments are fleeting! Stop and spend time with them now while you can. Forget about cleaning or hurrying off to get to wherever you are supposed to be next. Enjoy the time we are given with them, for all too soon, they'll be grown and gone. I know one day, K won't want to hold my hand. But for now, I'm trying to store up the memories in my heart of days like this past Sunday and to make sure that I'm there any time she wants me to be.

(The next time I'm having a difficult day with her, will someone please remind me about this post!?!) Love to you all!