I definitely never want to be classified as one of those people who takes people in my life for granted ever again. I took for granted I’d have more time with my first born to physically show her I loved her. I was working all the time to provide for her physical needs, and when I was home I was so exhausted I miswell not have been there. I knew that wasn’t a life for her. I honestly saw no end in sight of me living that type of lifestyle when I gave her up for adoption to her stepmother. Who knew only a few short years later, I’d be the stay-at-home working mom?
That brings me to my point of todays post….
Since I wasn’t brilliant enough to think of having my kids take a picture of me sitting on my porch in the middle of the country setting swinging gently away, you’ll have to picture it for me. The kids were in the back yard and occasionally in the front yard in front of me playing as loud as they could. (I swear the boys think that the country setting away from EVERYONE gives them the right to be twice as loud as normal.)
Despite how loud the boys and Zeva were being, I was still able to clearly hear the trees blowing and creating the nice breeze that was gently rocking me on my swing. Plus the birds were chirping happily. My mom had her windchimes on her trees by the front porch and they were making magical music too.
Constantly Tuning Out
I’m forever telling my kids to be quiet throughout a day. I know it’s wrong of me because I know there is going to come a day when I’m going to miss their constant chatter. I fear them not wanting to tell me the big things that they need to tell me because I don’t listen to the small things. Then other times, I literally tune them out and don’t hear anything they are saying and doing (unless it sounds like it’s something urgent that needs my attention..i.e…someone getting hurt, fighting, etc.) However, when you’re with your kids 24/7, you do need peace and quiet!!
I’ve noticed that lately my husband calls me throughout the course of his day, but I can’t stop what I’m doing for even five minutes to FULLY LISTEN to him on the phone. Literally when we get off the phone I have no clue what the hang he just told me. It bothers me that I feel that I’m being pulled so thin that I can’t even give him five to ten minutes a few times throughout my day.
It’s not that I can’t make the time for his calls because I definitely can! I make time for everything else I’m doing in my day! (Please note: This morning I made a solid effort to fully give him my undivided attention twice, and my kids didn’t cooperate for some odd reason. If I had been on a business call, you would have never known my kids were in the house!) I treasure his phone calls! I treasure hearing his voice all throughout my day especially since he’s gone from early morning hours until late at night everyday anymore it seems! Those phone calls are literally my life line throughout the day. So, I don’t want to miss hearing the sound of his voice completely because he gets frustrated with calling for what appears to be no good reason.
Sounds Of Life Are To Be Treasured
I say all of this as a reminder to you and to me! We need to slow down and treasure the sounds of the calming nature, the sounds of our kids growing up and learning, and the sounds of our soul mates voices. Life is all too short lived to miss out on those small details in life. We are not guaranteed another second.
I found a peace within myself that I haven’t felt in ages because I was slowing down and listening to my surroundings. I was reminded just how much I’ve been taking for granted all of the little things in my life and around me.
I believe God created all the sounds of nature to help calm our souls when we are stressed. I believe he created kids to be full of energy and life to remind us that there are many wonders to behold if we are open to looking at them with a fresh mindset. I believe that our spouses are there to be our helpmates and to help us get through the hard times of life.
Del called me the other day just to “hear the voice of the woman I love” because he was having a bad day at work. He stated hearing my voice and me telling him that I loved him was enough to help him get through the next stretch of his day. I’ve had many days where I’ve done the same with him. He’s right hearing that simple statement of love definitely helps us trek on. We are reminded why we’re going through the trenches of a bad day at work or a bad day of dealing with kids who are driving us batty.
[Tweet “Take time out of your day today to listen to the sounds of life around you.”]
What sounds in your life have you taken for granted lately?
I love this post!! Sometimes we get too caught up in what we have to do that we don’t cherish what we have in front of us now. Thanks for the reminder! XOXO
You said it right we don’t cherish what’s in front of us because we’re always chasing the next big thing. It was a reminder for me just as much as it was for everyone else.
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How lovely your porch must be. My 5 year old often reminds us to listen to the sounds of nature. He tries to identify whatever sounds he is hearing and knows a few birds correctly.
The porch I was talking about is actually on the house I have for sale. I have a nice view where I live now, but I don’t get to hear the wind the blowing. I do get to hear birds chirping from time to time and crickets, but it’s not the same. Plus I don’t have a screened in porch and swing here like I do on the house I have for sale. Plus here I have to deal with in-laws popping over all the time interrupting our play and activities.
My husband has called me before and said he just called to hear my voice. <3 And the sound of my son laughing and saying I love you are my most cherished for sure.
It’s such a wonderful thing when a spouse does that!! I love hearing my kids saying they love me too! I cherish their hugs and kisses too.
I sometimes take for granted the sound of my little girl singing away to herself. Before I know it, she will have outgrown this stage. I need to take time to stop and listen to the little things…
It’s so hard to appreciate our kids little actions and the noises they make when we are trying to handle so many other things in our lives. When we are with the kids all the time, we get so accustom to it that we just start to ignore it or try to turn it off.
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I am guilty of not quite listening to my husband as well. I will start making a conscious effort. Thank you.
Katrina,
It’s a hard habit to achieve doing. I’ve been trying to do it for a while now!! I’m always in amazement when I see my husband turn his full attention to me all the time. He is able to repeat everything I say, and I struggle with repeating what he stated thirty seconds ago.
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Sometimes you just want the quiet, but I understand what you’re saying!
Paula,
Tell me about it. There are times when I definitely want the quietness. I have to have it after a period of time.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting.
The chaos and noise in my house drives me nuts! Once a week I just go for a drive with the windows down or go sit in a park and read and realize how much I miss regularly listening to things.
Jennifer,
Isn’t it nice to be able to break away from it all and get that peace and quiet. I get that when my husband has one of his late nights at work. Of course, I suffer from it because I’m so exhausted from staying up and enjoying “MY ALONE TIME.” It’s worth it to some extent though.
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I do the same with my husband. It makes me feel bad and I need to put more of an effort in.
Megan,
I’m so glad I’m not alone with this issue. My husband stops whatever he’s doing to give me his undivided attention, and I feel exceptionally guilty when I don’t return the favor.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting.
I can totally relate. I work at home and sometimes, no, many times, I need a moment to myself of peace and quiet. But then I think to myself, one day I am going to miss all this chaos. I really enjoyed this post and felt it from beginning to end.
xoxo
Carica
Carica,
I’m so glad you could feel the post from beginning to end. I’ve had it weighing on my heart for a few days now. I guess today it just had to come out. I’m glad that you stopped by and commented.
Carica,
I’m glad you were able to feel this blog post. I’ve had it weighing on my mind a lot lately. Time is so fleeting and our kids grow up so quickly. Our marriages can fall apart by too much time not spent with each other.
I’m so glad that you stopped by and commented.
What a great reminder! I definitely needed it. I’m off to really LISTEN!
It’s so hard to keep it in mind all the time for me! I hope you have better success than I’ve had today so far. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
With the stress of being a mother to three young children, I often get aggravated with the constant noise. It’s after they’ve gone to bed and the house is still and quiet that I realize just how much I miss it.
I go through the same thing!! I try to treasure it in the mornings, but it doesn’t last long. By 11am, I want my mute button.
This is a great reminder. our kids grow up so quickly. With my youngest son on the road full time, I cherish every phone call, skype session and Facetime. I miss his voice so much.
I know what you mean. I can’t stand it when my kids are away from me to long. I try to avoid it as much as possible.
It’s so easy to do. I need to get off the computer and spend some time with my 3 year old!
That moment on the swing with nothing but the sounds of the birds and my kids playing to entertain me reminded me how simple life use to be BEFORE the Internet and social media came into our lives. (I’m NOT saying that I’d want to do away with either of those things because they have drastically improved our lives too. However, I need to find that balance of using it verses having time with just my family too.)