Can you Put Time in a Bottle?

For a while now, Baby O knows when you are making a bottle for him and is calm and content while you do so even if he was crying before. I guess that he figures you now know out what's bothering him, so he waits patiently for you to get the bottle made, sit down, and feed him. Now, this anticipation business is taking a funnier-to-mom turn. He is still calm while you make the bottle, but when you are done...he wants it stat...like, yesterday! As soon as you can get the top on it, he makes monkey sounds and bounces up and down in your arms while reaching for the bottle and opening he mouth like a bird for it. It is really funny. Thinking that this little corner of his personality may go as soon as it came, I reached for the camera. Bad idea mom....this is the photo I got!

Seriously, you are taking the bottle away from me to snap a picture?

Well, sweetie. I get sad, too. Like this morning in church, for instance. The sermon was about Leaving Home. The Preacher spoke of the opportunities that come with the strength it takes to move on from what you are used to. Whether as a child leaving one school for another, a young adult leaving for college, or an adult leaving for a job opportunity. It made me think of leaving Kilgore to head for college and how much was ahead of me. And...to think that 13 years have passed since then. That in and of itself was touching, but it didn't bring me to tears like what came next.

Yeah...that's me...I can sit up now...mamma is so proud....

After the sermon, the last song of the service was done differently. Instead of singing and going on home, the Pastor invited four high school seniors to speak in between stanzas of the song. They spoke about what they are leaving behind and what lies ahead for them. Now....that brought me to tears (and is again as I type--what is up with me?).

This is how I give mamma kisses now...I grab her face with both hands, open wide, and slobber all over her....

First, I was touched by the conviction and confidence these kids have. I was so proud of them and I don't even know them! It made me think that even though I often have second thoughts of raising my son in such a large city (I loved my childhood in a small town), this is a pretty good little section of the metroplex. Next, it made me think of myself at that age. How much I had in front of me and how extreme some of the times have been for me...some extremely painful, some extremely sad, and some extremely joyous. Man...its been a packed 13 years!

This is me after church checking out the tickle-y grass....

But, the biggest reason it made me teary is that I thought about how short life really is. The parents of those high school seniors can probably remember bringing them home from the hospital, the first time they smiled, when they started sitting, when they began walking, when they took their first spill on the bike, when they started driving. I thought further that their parents probably remember all of those moments in little clips and that the whole memory of their child is no longer than a movie preview. Wow! That made me wish for time to slow down so that I can savor every moment with the little man who brings a smile to my face every time I see him.