I can't wait until I'm in middle school....then everything will be all awesome all the time. (Say what?)
Middle school is just so-so......if I could only get to high school I'll have all the freedom in the world.
If I could just get my first "real" boyfriend.....(no offense 5th grade boy who asked me to "go with him.")
High-school would be so much better if I could just drive.
If I would just stop breaking out (okay--I'm still wishing for that...with no regrets).
College is going to be so much better than high school--I'll be able to do whatever I want (because I was so rebellious?????)
Let's move off campus--dorms are so freshman year.
Okay--I'm ready to live alone....no more room-mates.
And it goes on right? All through adulthood. There is always one more "level" that your brain thinks you need to reach in order to "have it all" and be able to relax into your life. A job, a better job, a house, a better house, kids, more kids, bigger vacations, nicer cars...........and it's exhausting and sadly you wake up one day and you're thirty four and you have some super amazing memories but a lot of wishing away too.
But one of the things I've forced myself to do over the last year is to punch my brain in the proverbial face every time it starts to do that and choose to enjoy the moment I'm in. I'm not wishing away diapers (and let's all just be honest about how they're WAY easier than accidents for the next year), I'm not wishing away the baby gate at the top of the stairs that I trip over constantly and almost rip off the wall in a (super mature) rage at least once a week, I'm not wishing away the car seat (as delightful as it is--and with winter coat season approaching it just gets more exciting), I'm not wishing away the crib, or the booster seat, or the small house (that I can hardly keep up cleaning anyway), or the cat who pukes (well..........).
I'm choosing to soak in what all these things have to offer.
Tonight I was reminded why I'm choosing this. We went to a weird little restaurant near our house called Larry's Pizza. I have never been to a place that operates like this joint--you pay a flat fee upon arrival and then you can order whatever and however many pizzas you want; loaded baked potato, chicken Alfredo, BLT, taco salad, meat lovers, chocolate chip, peach, whatever.........., when it's done they offer it to you first, serve you slices and then whatever is left they offer up to everyone else or put it on the open buffet. So weird to be able to order a whole baked potato pizza and then just eat one piece and order another pizza. And of course--like all fine dining establishments they have an arcade. Georgia loves this place--she loves pizza, she loves those arcade games, she loves playing with her daddy--it's a lot of love for Larry's pizza.
And as I was watching her eat her fifth piece of pizza (Larry's is losing out with Georgia--kids her age are free....no one anticipated the incredible "I can eat my weight......and I will" two year old in the form of my daughter) and squirming to get to the arcade games I was so grateful for this moment in a strange little restaurant on a Saturday night surrounded by screaming kids and mediocre theme pizza because it's where we are right now in our lives. And we might not have everything perfect and there are still days where I'll wish away a temper tantrum or an over-flowing laundry room, or a strained relationship, or some obligation I wish I didn't have but I don't want to miss out on Larry's pizza moments because I was wishing for the next best thing.....I want to dwell in them and embrace them and be thankful for them.
What's your Larry's Pizza moment?
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