Time Out, Please

As I write this, I am sitting in the back of my car handing out candy for Halloween. Maddie is at her friend's house. Alex took off with his friends and one of their dad's, and Riley and Kacey are with Mark. It's just one more example of how things are changing--too fast.

I remember when I could take a picture of all of them in their costumes. Now kids are missing, and other friends have moved into the photo. It's different, and I'm having trouble adjusting.

Over the past couple weeks, Mark, Maddie and I have gone on two high school visits. High school. As is not grade school. No, this can't be happening.

Last week, Kacey climbed out of her crib--forever--and straight into a "big-girl bed." And there she has stayed ever since while an empty crib sits across the room. This weekend we will be dismantling it--never to be put together by us again. It's breaking my heart.

Now, it's not like I didn't realize that changes like this were going to happen. I've heard all the advice to relish the time you have with your kids. As Gretchen Rubin, author of the Happiness Project, points out, "The days are long, but the years are short."

I've tried to hold on to each tender moment and milestone. But lately, I'm losing my grip. Big girl beds, high school applications, first Communions, graduations, friends replacing parents. Life is whizzing by too fast. And I don't like it. Not one bit.