{Five Minute Friday} Cherished

For the first time I’m participating in Five Minute Friday, a link-up project at Lisa-Jo Baker’s blog. This week the prompt was “Cherished …” Here is what she says over there: We write because we love words and the relief it is to just write them without worrying if they’re just right or not. So we take five minutes on Friday and write like we used to finger paint. For joy in the process. No matter how messy the result.

Cherished makes me think about two things. Babies who grow into toddlers who grow into preschool who go to kindergarten. My mind doesn’t go much past that because that’s where I am with my oldest. “Cherished” also reminds me of moments.

Moments with my two kids. Moments that having these two kids have changed me. I’m never going to be the same person because of these two. Not just any two. These two. They were meant to be ours.

I want to cherish the way Ben goes from toddler ways to preschool ways in the blink of an eye. I want to cherish the way Cate wants me to help her get dressed in the morning then the later that evening wants to give herself a shower. She and I don’t cherish the mornings like Daddy and Ben do. I want to cherish our meals around the table, where conversation is interrupted because Ben has to be reminded to sit down. Again. I want to cherish Cate capturing so many details in her stories. I want to cherish playing board games, which requires infinite amounts of patience for Ben but is a love language to Cate.

STOP. Man, that five minutes went by fast. 

Want to join us? Here are Lisa-Jo’s rules: 1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking. 2. Link back here and invite others to join in. 3. Please visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments. That is like the one rule we all really care about. For reals.