Motherhood – after 2 kids and nearly 3 years as a mother, I would like to think that I am getting the hang of it. However, I know that I have so many years of learning and growing ahead of me that I would be foolish to think that I have it down now. Heck, we haven’t even hit the elementary school years yet…then there’s pre-teendom, and the teenage years…sometimes thinking about it all makes my head spin.

Even in my short time as a mom I have learned that the second that I think “wow, things are going really smoothly” something changes. Suddenly someone is waking up at night, someone is teething, someone seems to have totally forgotten they are potty trained, and someone has developed a whole new streak of stubborn (sometimes this one is me). It’s a constant cycle of growing and changing as a family.

Recently my brother-in-law generously agreed to baby-sit for us for a evening so that we could go out to dinner to celebrate our anniversary. When we came home that night he commented on how much easier it was to watch the boys now than it was six months ago. “Yeah,” I said, “I feel like we’re in a sweet spot. I’m hoping to ride it out as long as possible.”

I thought about this statement later. Was I stopping to appreciate the “sweet spot” or just waiting for the next ball to drop? But I didn’t have too long to ponder before the next cycle came. And then I realized you have to take in the sweet spot (no matter how brief) right then and there.

So, the other day in the midst of the craziness of getting lunches for the kids, suggesting (ok, rather harshly suggesting) they be patient for the umpteenth time, washing dishes, switching the laundry to the dryer, and making another to-do list in my head (yeah, I’m a multi-tasking maniac), I suddenly realized it was time to stop and just take a moment to love on my kids. So I cranked up the music, picked them up one at a time, and spun them around until we were all incredibly dizzy, giggling, and lying on the floor. And in that moment of lying on the floor, heads smushed together and the room spinning I soaked in the sweet spot and prayed this would be the part of the day they would remember….not the crazy, rushing, tired, harsh, too busy to play mommy, but the one who was twirling them around lying on the floor with them and tickling their tummies.

I want to be her more often.