Monday, September 08, 2008

driving home today,
i was listening to the "mamma mia" soundtrack...again!
the song "slipping through my fingers" came on.
as usual, it had me in tears.
when i hear it, i think of
my three beautiful daughters.
the times we have shared.
the laughter. the tears.
the good times and the bad.
they are truly three of my best friends. but this song makes me realize that i could have been
so much better as a mother. i should have done so much more
with them when there was plenty of time to do it.
now i see the future closing in and i have to admit that before long,
they will all be grown and gone and living on their own.
they will be wives and mothers and i will no longer be the center of their lives.
two of them are already married
and one of them is already a mother.
so i am even closer to being the only girl in the house than i care to admit.
but my intent is not to whine or seem entirely morose.
my intention for posting this is to
remind the rest of you
to make the most of every single minute you have your children near you. don't wait for "later"...it comes far too quickly.
and then "later" becomes "too late".
children are so precious, and once they grow,
they are grown ups forever after.
so love them. play with them.
read to them.
take them all the places you dream of going.
hug them. kiss them.
and never, ever "send" them to bed...
always tuck them in.
and always tell them you love them!!!
sarah, laura, jessica...i love you!
ps...you can hear this song by choosing it
from my playlist to the left!
or here are the words:
schoolbag in hand
she leaves home in the early morning
waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile
i watch her go with a surge of that well-known sadness
and i have to sit down for a while

the feeling that i'm losing her forever
and without really entering her world
i'm glad whenever i can share her laughter
that funny little girl

slipping through my fingers all the time
i try to capture every minute
the feeling in it
slipping through my fingers all the time
do i really see what's in her mind
each time i think i'm close to knowing
she keeps on growing
slipping through my fingers all the time

sleep in our eyes
her and me at the breakfast table
barely awake, i let precious time go by
then when she's gone
there's that odd melancholy feeling
and a sense of guilt i can't deny

what happened to those wonderful adventures
the places i had planned for us to go
well, some of them we did
but most we didn't
and why i just don't know

slipping through my fingers all the time
sometimes i wish that i could freeze the picture
and save it from the funny tricks of time
slipping through my fingers all the time

11 comments:

Jamie said...

{tear}
thanks Jenny 4 the reminder . . . they do grow up too fast . . . Karlee is already 5 and in kindergarten.

ForeverSarahLee said...

Mom, YOU might think that you "could have done more"... And frankly, most people probably feel a little of that no matter HOW well they lived their lives. But to be honest with you, I do not believe that for one second any of your children feel the same. I know you have done nothing but try your best, you have made your whole life about your children. I think that I truly could not have gotten a better mother if I had asked! I love you with ALL of my heart, and you truly ARE my best friend!

It makes me sad too. I think ofall the unhappy nights I had w/Matt,and most of them came from not being able to see more of you & my family... When others seemed to be able to do so EVERY single day. I was jealous. While living at Cody's I missed seeing you. And whenever I think of how I really wanna live in another state, I wonder how I'll ever actually DO it... Lol! You've horrible at phone calls, emails just aren't quite the same, and I know I won't be able to visit near as much as I would WANT to. But I also know that you KNOW no matter where your kids are, that we love you & are thinking of you.

Thanks mom! ...for everything. You truly are AMAZING!! :o)

Sarah

Unknown said...

On Jenny, Tears in my eyes as this is so true!

OUr 19th year old daugter is moved out and partly as teenagers they want their own life now. They want to know they can do it on their own. She and I are getting along better as she is out as it is hard for them at times to conform to the rules of the house. Children have choices, and as we all know, once they have their own children, they tend to appreciate more their parents, for good times and bad.

Now 11 year old, Jesus is the only one left in our house. Well, of coarse 16 year old Andrew is in a group home so he is not out by choice but, for his needs.

Ok, well hang in there and keep the faith!

p.s. thanks for always saying "hello" to me and always like patting my back. Can you massage next time?? LOL
♥ Michelle

Laura Blue said...

*tear* i can't see the keyboard. i agree with what sarah said, you did your best and we love you! i'm glad to say that you are my best friend and will always be! thanks for all the amazing things we DID get to do together. And it's never too late to still do things that you wanted to do... we'll just be bigger. lol i love you mom! thanks again for all you do and thanks for the advice as well. hope you're having a good day.

Jenn said...

You finally post and make me cry! Thanks for the reminder... I can't believe how quick they do grow up. Morgan is 11 and Faith is 9.
Your an awesome mom and now you get to experience being a grandmother. Enjoy that one as well!
Love ya-

Unknown said...

hello chick, this is me now
sndalloons44.typepad.com. having a free blog won't work. LOL so now I am paying and it works. ha.
take care

Guthrie's said...

AMEN! You've done it, gone and made me cry. I agree with your advice and gratefully I kind of get a 2nd chance since I still have little girls. I just want all young mothers to read this post. Enjoy every day with your little ones! Thanks Jenny!

careyttops or katelyn's kid kitchen said...

this post touched me so much!!
i just blogged on this very thing a few days ago- it really has been an item of concern on my mind and something i'm trying harder to do! we live in such a busy world that it's hard to just slow down and enjoy life's little moments!

mama mia- i was touched by that song as well! what a fun flick!

careyttops or katelyn's kid kitchen said...

thanks so much for the post cards.




love you so much .


sicerly elise miller

Jenn said...

I'm home! And... I have some pics posted already. It was INCREDIBLE!!! I want to go back. I'm going to take Italian this spring so when I do go back, I can speak the language.
So didn't find the love of my life but did find a cute Italy boy to flirt with A LOT when I was in Roma. We went back to catch our flight a day early for last minute shopping and went out with him and another boy. So fun... great kisser! I LOVE ITALY!!! =)
We seriously need to get together for dinner soon to swap stories.
xoxox

Unknown said...

Hi Aunt Jenny,
That is such a sweet post. I am sure I will be having those same feelings all too soon. It is a great reminder for me to treasure every day I have as a mother now! :)