Happy Birthday!

happy birthday, sweet ellie!

How does this happen so fast???  We went to a mother daughter retreat last weekend and the speaker made it a point to remind us why our kids grow up so fast.  In the day to day, it seems like it’s going to take forever for our kids to grow up – learn to dress themselves, not to chew with their mouths open, to turn off the lights and shut the doors – but when we do the math, we realize just how little time we have with them.

Now that Ellie is 10 years old, I only have 416 weekends with her until she turns 18. 

Or, 2920 days.

Yes, that’s a lot, but I would have guessed the number was much higher if I didn’t use a calculator.

I remember hearing a story a while back about a dad that calculated how many weekends he had left before his son would turn 18 and he put that many marbles in a jar on his dresser.  Each week he would take a marble out as a reminder that the time he has with his son is limited.

What a great reminder for me to be purposeful in how I spend my days with my children.  Even if our purpose is just to hang out and have fun. 

Now we are going to practice some sewing with her new sewing machine.