They're only little for a time

As I stood singing hymns in church, the girls clamoring for WHO would sit beside mommy.......

Hands groping my legs; bodies pushing against mine hard enough to make me teeter; little feet on top of my feet; arms wrapped around my waist to ensure their coveted spots........

I leaned back to a friend and commented:  "This is when the touch quotient goes through the roof."

She smiled, then politely stated, "Enjoy it while it lasts.  Soon enough they won't WANT that attention."

I had no choice but to agree.

It's hard, this stage of mommy-hood.

My body is not my own.  My time is not my own.  My thoughts sometimes aren't even my own.  LOL!

HOWEVER, as my friend reminded me:

I. 
wouldn't. 
change. 
it. 
for. 
the. 
world.

I'm not going to lie and say that I don't have days when I literally shoo the kids away because I just need time to decompress or have literally been touched so much my skin actually hurts.

But, I can honestly say that I LOVE snuggling, caressing backs and heads, and just generally loving on my kiddos.

Secretly I yearn for them to clamor for my attention.

I DO know that this time is fleeting.

I have 3 older children who generally sit in an entirely different pew across the aisle from us at church nowadays.

To you mommies who are 'in the thick of it':  Relish this time.  Enjoy their hugs.  Memorize the feel of their little arms wrapped around your legs and waist.

It won't be long and they may take a step back when you approach them for a hug; when you put YOUR arm around their shoulders.  At least in public.

Thank you, friend, for stating what I already know.

This time DOES go fast.

I AM relishing it.

Even though some moments I need a little extra space to breath.  Once that needed moment is over, I'll willingly go back to being pressed against, tugged on, squished, and all around 'touched' by my bundles of joy.