Solstice

On this longest day of the year, I thought I'd share a few thoughts about mothering. Today I took the kids to the center of Old Town to splash in the fountain in market square. I was surprised to find no other kids there with their moms (maybe they're all at Stonehenge?), but we were delighted to take off our shoes and jump in. Pretty much all that Judah wanted to do was pick up the wishing pennies and throw them, but he had so much fun doing so. Then he decided to sit down in the water and needed a new change of clothes by the time we left to get ice cream.
After the ice cream we needed to walk by the fountain to get to the car, and I wasn't really in that much of a hurry, so we headed into the water again for a few minutes. I had every intention of making sure Judah stayed somewhat dry this time, but of course, even the best intentions can't keep an almost-two-year-old boy neat and tidy.
At this point, there just wasn't anything I could do but jump in the fountain and splash with my kids. Judah was already soaked, so I thought let's just have some fun. So we did. And what fun we had! It was such a fun way to pass the time with my little ones.
As we were cleaning up and packing up the car, a passerby made a comment like "I sure don't miss the stroller days." I made an I-hear-ya kind of face and then he said something that I don't think I'll forget: "Just remember, the days go slow, but the years go fast." It's just so strikingly true. And so fitting a day to hear such wise words. It was a reminder to me to make the best of every moment. And while the days seem so long, they're so fleeting.