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It happens the moment you hold your first little one in your arms: "Oh I can't wait until they look at me and smile!" When that precious moment finally happens you find yourself longing for the day that they can roll over themselves, and then to when they can sit up themselves, until you have mentally grown them right up and out of the house.
As I have watched my kids growing, and as they have each hit a significant milestone, I have mentally tucked it away until the next child would need to reach it. But what happens when your last child has reached that milestone? Imagine the day when you never have to change their diaper again! Or when you never have to feed them again! Or when they can reach the sink and wash their OWN hands!
That is what I call turning milestones into headstones. Ever since my first child, there have been many milestones that I couldn't wait to bury. I longed for the day when I could feed my baby oatmeal and not have to bathe them right after, or to hear them ask for a drink and tell them they know how to get their own now. I longed for the day that I could send them to the sink to wash their own hands before eating. I envisioned the day that my last would able to dress herself without any more help than to tell her to try again because the clothes don't match.
At long last I have been able to turn those, and many more, milestones into headstones. Rob thinks that I am CRAZY for wanting to do a full fledged funeral for these milestones and that I will surely miss doing these daily mundane things, but until that happens, I am not hesitant in the least to give them a nice resting place among the many other headstones that I have created.
Here are some of the latest milestones turned into headstones:
Milestone: All children can get into the car and get their own seat belts on.
Milestone: All children can eat their food without spilling on their clean clothes, wash their own hands and faces when done and clear their dishes off the table.
Milestone: All children can brush their teeth, get their own jammies, potty, and climb in bed themselves.
Headstone: Jordan-check, Brandon-check, Megan-check, Alexis-check, Brooklyn-check!
Milestone: All children will wipe, flush, and wash their hands before exiting the restroom.
What headstones have you made? (Not that I encourage anyone to want headstones!)
12 comments:
I was just waiting for you to say, "and now I am pregnant, so much for being done with all of those things!" LOL that was great sis, I know the feeling and I truly can't wait to be done with changing diapers, potty training, etc....but I still have a few yrs ahead of me until I can truly make headstones out of anything :( Where is everyone today? I know Sharon is out for a few days due to one of the babies having an ear infection. I talked to her this a.m. and she is taking Zeki in to get checked again, he is not improving. Keep her in your prayers as I know she is having a hard time.
PS. Don't stop. Laughter is what I need right now. This is so cute and creative and funny. I say, where in the heck do you get it all from.
Thanks Amber for thinking of me. Ziki seems to be improving now. He's laying on the couch talking and squealing, a pooping right now. We'll see how it goes tonight, though. . .
That was classic, Bon! It was very thought-provoking, yet hilarious at the same time. I won't have any headstones for awhile, but I can relate to what you are saying. It will be nice to one day feel like I am done with whatever thing. Check! Then you become a grandparent and get to live through it all over again with your children and their spouses! I wonder what it will be like in the eternities. Okay, maybe I'd rather not think about that right now; I'll just take things a day at a time, and today was definitely one of those days--at least tonight anyway. Jeremy's gone; that should say it all.
Anyway.... Sharbear, I'm glad Ziki is doing better; I'm sorry he's not been feeling well. I know that wears on you, too. If you need to get some rest, see if you can ship your kids off to some friends for a little bit one afternoon or something (even if you have to split them up to different friends). You've got to have a break sometime. I hope tonight is good for you.
Amber, that would have been funny if that was a way of making an announcement all right. We can tell what you have on your mind. :-)
FYI, in case no one noticed, Mike posted an entry, so y'all will have to go check it out and make comments there so that he'll want to do it again. Maybe we can get him more involved.
Love y'all! Thanks for the fun post, Bonbon!
:-)
Tami
I'm not family...am I allowed? I guess I started this whole blog thing with PP, so you can graft me in.
Let's see...
They can usually understand the command I have given them...whether they obey is another thing.
We can have real, grown-up conversations now.
If someone is crying, they can usually tell me why.
Now about me...
I don't change diapers anymore.
I don't have to do all the picture-book reading in the house anymore.
I can take a shower or a nap and not worry (too much) that someone is going to damage themselves.
I can go shopping...during the day.
It does kind of make me sad, though...so I like to hold other babies and remember the good ol' days...and then give them back when they start crying.
Mamabear, Sorry to disappoint. :) Not really!
Sharebear, Thanks for humoring me. Sometimes I can get carried away and don't know when to stop. So if that is the case, please tell me in a not-so-kind way.
Tami, I thought about the grandparent thing. It is not the same! Like Lorena said, you can love them and then give them back when they cry.
Lorena,
Welcome. I am honored to have you as a guest. Since Shauna is my blog mother, that must make you my grandmother. Please come back soon!:)
Bonnie,
That last headstone you talked about, well not to discourage you, but that will have to wait till they're really dead.:D
Boy, do I have a long way to go.
lol
Oh my goodness, this was a great post. This was so clever, awesome job.
Some of the headstones in my life I grieve, and some I celebrate. They both mean that time goes by so fast. . .did you see it? Catch it if you can!
The one milestone I am eagerly awaiting is the day when my youngest, the blog baby, can stop tooting in public, feed all her commenters and write her own posts everday. Then maybe I can RIP!
I really do like that one. This blog was really cleaver. I have never thought of it that way but that is exactly what it is. I have alot of milestones ahead of me. But I wouldn't have it any other way. LOVE ROXIE
PP, It was too fast and I missed it. Please enlighten!
Which blog baby?
Do you guys think I am trying to make an announcement? Well, I AM NOT.
Doesn't your blog ever feel like a demanding baby, wanting all your time, wanting you to hold it, caress it, feed it, adore it, be adored by others and so on? Maybe your babies are still sleeping too much. Wake them up, they are supposed to only sleep for 3 hours at a time. Sheesh, what kind of blog mothers are you?
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