“The biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this (raising children). I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.” Anna Quindlen, “Goodbye Dr. Spock”

Anna Quindlen described my life perfectly when she wrote about the “getting it done”.

I live in the “the getting it done”.

Before we go on can we take a quick minute and talk about how awesome Anna Quindlen is? Oh I wish I could write like her!

I relish checking things off the list, I thrive off the sense of accomplishment that completing these tasks brings.

I struggle with the lack of control raising three small people brings, getting things done is how I attempt to bring sanity back to my life.

But I’ve missed some things by living in the getting it done.

The day my daughter was born I was so worried her brothers wouldn’t get to meet her before swim lessons that was all I could focus on.

Every contraction was one step closer to meeting my goal of getting those boys to swim practice on time.

Within minutes of delivery I was on the phone to get the boys there to meet their sister. I didn’t take a few minutes to revel in the miracle that was that sweet baby girl.

I’m sure my conversations in the delivery room centered around reminding people to pack the striped towel, extra clothes, and to please not forget the goggles, instead of enjoying the sweet moment.

I have taken time in the months since she was born to enjoy her and the three of them together, but still those first few minutes I was so focused on checking another box that I didn’t sit and enjoy the “task” that had just been completed.

I find myself rushing throughout the day to get things done: to get the laundry started, dinner cooked, the house picked up, homework done, and teeth brushed.

Sometimes I forget that raising children is a process, not a series of tasks to be completed.

I’m trying to change, I’m trying to slow down.

I’m trying to remember to get down on the floor with the kids instead of hurrying to finish one more thing on my never ending to do list.

In the hustle and bustle that is life with littles, it is easy to forget that they are growing up quickly.

So today, for one hour I put aside the laundry, the dishes, and the bathrooms that are screaming to be cleaned  and  I built a fort with AsthmaMan.

He loved it. We talked about how we would build the fort, how much fun we would have when the fort was done, and then we sat in the fort and chatted about life.

And while I will admit that part of me was so anxious to move on to the next task, just sitting with him in the fort was sort of awesome.

It was great to watch his imagination explode as we made a giant mess and hid out from bears (yep, bears). It was great not to rush from one thing to the next while having a child beg for me to play with him.

It was just great.

Here’s to putting aside the “getting it done” for just a little bit.

Things still need to get done, some sense of control and cleanliness need to be maintained.

Maybe living in the moment isn’t about letting all these things go by the wayside, maybe living in the moment is more about acknowledging those around us, and stopping (even briefly) to appreciate the time we have with them.