Be Still

My baby girl fell asleep on me today.  That hasn't happened for a loooong time.

It forced me to sit still and just enjoy it.

Every bit of the sweetness of the moment.

Her slow, steady breaths.

The curl of her lashes.

The weight and warmth of her on my chest.

And of course, I cried.

Because when I left my house last Wednesday morning, Mollie was the baby of Team Reed, our baby girl.  By the time I saw her later that same day, when she was at the hospital to meet Brooks, she had morphed into a big girl.

How does that happen so quickly?

Yet it has happened every time God has grown our family.  It was shocking when it was Kate and baby Carter back in 2006, and it has still been shocking each time since then, even though I know now that it's coming.

How do you prepare your heart for such an obvious working out of the inevitable growing up of these precious little ones?

Being swept up in the daily rhythms of life lulls me into thinking they'll stay as they are at that moment. Yet every now and then, time slows for a moment--crystallizes--and I see how much they've grown.

And it's in these times when I have to catch my breath, almost always through tears, and praise God for allowing me the joy and privilege to be mother to these five little ones.

O Lord, don't let me lose my wonder...