So sad

[peggyfromwastate]

I was just looking at my 8 year old son and I flashed back to when he was a 2 year old, the cuddliest little boy ever... And I just wished I could go back for just a minute... Back to when they all were so small. I still have one little one still in the cuddlebug stage, thank goodness, but knowing she's my last makes everything a little more bittersweet.

Sigh. Life is complicated.

Oh, I hear you!! they seem to grow up quicker with every kid... and I LOVE LOVE LOVE that 0-2 stage, before the demanding or whiney or I want Daddy parts kick in. The small warm fuzzy head in bed at night when you check on them... wanting to be carried when they're sick... ah yes. My oldest is only 8, but already so big and grown up and gone for so much of the day with school, and yes, it does somehow feel like you blink and then, boom, their childhood has passed. Sigh. I think there's no greater bond than with your children, making it the hardest to loosen up on.

Jenn

[HouseofWool]

I am totally feeling this. I am confident that Sophie is my last and everything is so bittersweet. I noticed that the soles of her feet are starting to develop calluses from walking and I realized that I love kissing the bottoms of her sweet, chubby baby feet. Now I will be kissing toddler feet - not the same at all.

[houseelf]

I could write a novel about this exact issue. My first born brings me both great pride and a tinge of sadness at the big kid that he is today. A million signals point to the fact that he is on the cusp of growing into a teenager. I am bereft at the loss of his babyhood. DD is still has a sweet, protected innocence about her and obviously the baby is still nine months so I'm a touch less sad about them.

I tend to be on the overly sentimental side of the spectrum so I can really get caught up in every little milestone. At this baby's baptism, I had the thought that the next time here is a celebration in this church in our family's honor, it would probably be a funeral. My husband is far less sentimental. He just reminded me to enjoy the present.

I just don't know if I will ever feel done mothering, you know? This baby was IT and I know we're done and yet I just don't feel it in my bones. I try to tell myself that there is life after kids and that I entered the mothering stage mourning the loss of my childfree self. I didn't become a mother gracefully at all. Now I can't imagine a life when mothering isn't my daily central purpose. I console myself with the thought that these are not the last children's lives that I will be involved in. Still, nothing else will ever fill that void once they're gone.

Kelly

[mommax3]

This is SUCH a hard transition, one I struggled pretty hard with for years (literally). I still have twinges of sadness that we didn't have more kids. I am really 98% fine with my life, and finding a family-friendly job has helped a lot. Becoming a parent is such a HUGE learning curve, and if you navigate it successfully.....in a few years, you have tons of skills and no place to use them, because you've made yourself obsolete. Hang in there, everyone.