This summer is bittersweet. You see. I have spent the last four years of my life being home loving on and raising my sweet, yet wild toddler boys born 18 months apart. Our weeks are filled with adventures to local train museums, botanical gardens, playdates and days at home. I don’t mean to romanticize it – some days are just plain hard and I’m exhausted from refereeing toddler fights, repeating myself and being ignored for the hundredth time, not to mention the endless laundry and dishes. But the truth is I love it. My sons are my hearts walking around outside my body and this summer our time together as we know it is coming to an end. We found an amazing language immersion school literally five minutes away from our home at a compelling price so our boys will be full-time preschoolers this fall.
Why does it feel like they’re leaving for college?!? I’m nervous about sending them away to an institution that will spend more time with them than me. What if I’m making the wrong choice? What if they’re not ready? What if I’m not ready? The mom-guilt is real. Be still my heart. So, we are being intentional as a family about making the most of our time together before we walk into this next chapter of life. We are going to soak up a ton of fun this summer, enjoy each giggle, cuddle and revel in the adventures that lie ahead in the months to come starting with our first-ever vegetable and herb garden.
The Gorman Family Garden is a place where you can beep your tricycle horn as loud as you can as you ride up carrying watering cans on the back ledge. That’s precious cargo.
It’s a place where it’s fine to get wet and dirty. It’s a place where we can go and watch our seeds become tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow peppers, strawberries and an array of herbs. It’s a place where we’re going to watch miracles happen this summer. And when the crops harvest, the boys can help me in the kitchen as we make a meal from what we grew together.
The garden can also be a place to remind me that the Lord can be trusted with my uncertainty. If He has given us all we need to grow fruits and vegetables, how much more can He be trusted to ease my worrying heart and give us all we need to raise honorable men, Selah.
Check out Portia’s strawberry shortcake (layer cake) recipe for a
summer recipe.
Originally posted on The MOPS Blog
It is hard! Plain and simple. Watching your kids zoom through milestones is the most rewarding, yet painful things ever.
Let those mixture of emotions wash over you. Cherish each and ever one and each milestone!
My girls are 21 & 19 and making their way in life. Oh sure, there will still be milestones that I will get to be a part of but I sometimes wish I could get back those days of preschool backpack messes, 1st day of kindergarten jitters and needing my hand to hold. Like I said, feel the emotions and cherish each and every one!
Great post!
thanks for normalizing this process. appreciate your words dear! wow 19 &21!