This week I will be enjoying my 18th Christmas as a mom. I know those of you with newborns get so sick of hearing “in the blink of an eye they will be grown”, but moms it is true. I feel like I blinked and suddenly those precious babies I use to cradle in my arms became teenagers that are taller than me (well one isn’t yet but give her a year or two and I think she will be).
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A few Christmas’ ago while reading the Christmas story in Luke one morning I came upon Luke 2:19
“But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart”
Since then every Christmas I think about that verse again and again as I try desperately not to get caught up in the hustle and the bustle of the Christmas season the world has created.
As defined by Meriam Webster. com the two words of great important in this verse mean
Treasure:
something valuable (such as money, jewels, gold, or silver) that is hidden or kept in a safe place
something that is very special, important, or valuable
a person who is greatly loved or valued especially because of being very helpful
Ponder:
to think about or consider (something) carefully
My children of course are not the son of God, as the newborn that Mary held in her arms was, but they are still amazing gifts from God. Gifts that I need to take time to treasure, and ponder about.
It is so easy during the Christmas season to get caught up in “doing for our children” but we need to take time to also “treasure and ponder” how blessed we are to have them.
During these last few days, I challenge you to take sometime to really observe your children. To take in what amazing gifts they are.
Grab your mug of coffee or tea, and quietly enter the room in which they are playing and sit down and watch. Don’t direct, don’t even speak, just treasure and ponder quietly the blessings of your children.
Store those moments up, the smell of their hair, the softness of their little chubby cheeks, the way they say “mommy” (well at least the times they say it without demanding something from you 🙂 ). Give them a hug and really take a moment to fully feel the embrace.
Treasure, and ponder moms. Treasure and ponder some of your greatest gifts.
(the figurine is from one of my favorite nativity sets, willow tree)
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Oh I know that I will miss these days dearly when my girls are older! They are 1 and 3.5. When my three year old is chatting away with her bears and “friends” it’s so dear that I just want to bottle it up. I am even saying to my husband: I wish I could see what she was like when she was one. I fear that I won’t have a clear picture of their darling little voices when they are older.
Thanks for the reminder to just take it all in. 🙂