DANCE, DANCE, DANCE

Tonight I was the luckiest lady in the world because I was one of the FEW mommies allowed into the Daddy Daughter Dance!! I get to capture all those wonderful moments since I am the photographer!! (sometimes this profession really pays off!) It is such a special time for dads and daughters, and such an honor to witness. I was again reminded this evening what a vapor girlhood is. It vanishes so very quickly, right before our very eyes. I feel so fortunate that my three girls are all spaced so far apart - I feel like I get to hang on to being a mommy of a little girl a little longer than some moms get to. I used to be so frustrated with the fact that they are so far apart in age, but once again God is showing me He always knows better than I do, and His plans are not always our plans. What a treasure that all these girls were made to feel like a princess by their fathers, grandfathers, or uncles tonight. And to again be reminded that they are indeed a real princess. A daughter of the King of Kings - and THAT is a reason to celebrate!!

It's moments like these that make me catch my breath -- Moments that make me think "Who am I that God would choose me to be the Mommy to these precious lives? Little ol' me, in all my futile attempts at being the person I want to be?" Sometimes I feel so inept at the job of being Mommy. Even though I know that He is fully equipping me to do the job He has given me, I still stop and wonder why. Those days when all I can think of is what I need to do, what I need to teach them, the manners to be reminded of, the laundry to be folded, the dishes to be washed, the pictures to be edited, the arguements that need to be attended to, the house to be cleaned. I tell them to hurry up, hurry up, and forget to stop and bask in those ever-fleeting precious moments, the everyday moments that I tend to overlook. The feeling of little girl hands reaching out to me to be held, the "will you read me a story?", "will you play with me?", "will you sing me a song?". It's then that I sometimes remember......these days are flying away just like when they blow those dandelion puffs - they are just being scattered away. And I try to remember..... remember the smell of their hair after a bath, I remember to smile at the hairbows in my pockets and the crackers in my purse, I step over the mess on the floor and sit down to play, I read that same story, just one more time. I stop and listen, just listen... to the teenager, without giving advice. I treasure and store up all the little everyday moments, because one day all too soon, they will be gone.

"Only be careful, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your children's children." Deuteronomy 4:9