time

Today, for the first time in quite a while, Truett and I had a big chunk of time to be together. Caia was here of course but she doesn't really factor in yet since she still stays right where you put her. Thank goodness. Jem was at preschool and there wasn't a playdate or errands to run. We just had 2 hours of time before we needed to pick Jem up from school.
After dropping Jem off, we walked back into the house and my eyes instantly went to the mess that was still left over from breakfast. My to-do list started running through my head. Email this person. Write that thank you note. Fill out that form. But I remembered that earlier in the morning the boys had asked where we were going. I told them that Jem was going to school and then Tru and I were coming home to play. And I remembered how Tru's face had lit up and how excited he was when he said, "We're going to play?"
Suddenly, the to-do list wasn't so important. And the breakfast dishes could just be washed along with the lunch dishes later. So I set about the much more important task of playing with my youngest boy. We colored and laughed. We kicked the ball around. We read some books. We raced cars. And, by the grace of God, I was able to stay in the moment with him. I was able to give my full attention to this little person of mine who wants so desperately to know that I see him.
Will this happen every time Truett and I have some time together? Probably not. There will still be days when the to-do list is too urgent or when other stuff gets in the way. But those days will hopefully be few and far between. Because before I'm ready for it, he won't be asking me to play with him anymore and there isn't any email, errand or chore that should take precedence over soaking up every minute I have with him.