“Mothers, it’s worth it. It’s worth it. It’s worth every hour of it. It’s worth every sleepless night of it. It’s worth every moment of counsel.” –C. Swindoll
I’m my way outside to catch fireflies with Grace, Ethan, and Jacob. Even though I am so tired that my eyes itch, even though I need quiet and my nice comfy bed. Even though my book is calling me. Even though their bed time was almost 2 hours ago.
They are outside already, on the porch. I keep hearing them say, “There’s one!” “There’s one by the pine tree!” “There’s another one!” “Let’s go catch them!”
I didn’t know if they would leave the security of the porch, to go into the dark night. But, they did. They’re out there now, with a big glass jar.
And I’m smiling. It’ll be a late night.
But it’s so worth it.
P.S. I took the pictures of Caleb today with my new camera. He’s such a cutie!
Good to be Home 
It’s ABSOLUTELY worth it! These PRICELESS moments of their childhood are so fleeting,grasp every opportunity to enjoy them AND know the same childlike sense of wonder!
Have you ever read the book “A Sense of Wonder” by Rachel Carson?Try and find it, it came out in the 60’s
Oh and have you figured out how to change the ISO on yur camera?If you can change it to 800 or more it would be perfect for photographing those fireflys
p.s if you have any Nikon camera questions, ask my friend Matt. He’s very knowledgable and likes to helphttp://www.xanga.com/MatthewSavilleFor instance, you can dial down the flash so it’s not so bright!
such an encouraging post for me as today was very trying with my 3 year old! i had a moment today at the grocery store where I just wanted to crawl under the cart and cry…he was being so disobedient. Ahhhhh….=)
pictures look great!
Love that sweet little face! Your kids are so photogenic! Yes! It’s worth it! I am on the other side of parenting now, and I can so totally agree! I love it when we have time to get together with my now adult children and they start talking about their growing up years! I learn a lot! When we still lived in the States, I used to teach parenting classes, and usually, for one of the classes I would invite my then teenage kids to come in and talk to the class about how they were raised. it was so cool to hear them say they were thankful for discipline! WOW! They actually said they planned to raise their own children the same way! Oh yes! It’s worth it!
That he is, Shanda ~ I second your motion that “he’s such a cutie!”
Yup. A cutie. I love your sentiments in this. Some days it does feel “worthless” doesn’t it? But then something happens and it’s all worthwhile again. I hope you have a great day. I guess you saw I took your advice and took B. up on her invitation of several weeks ago. I found it a bit addicting last night as I found a bunch of old college friends. š
Cute pictures! The time it takes to raise children is more than worth it.
Your new camera takes amazing pictures! I’m so excited to see all of the pictures you take with it! You see this world through such unique eyes!And thank you for your post. I needed to hear it today and it puts things into perspective!
Caleb is so cute!!! I know I always say that, but it is so true. I love his pretty eyes. Shanda, I bet you woke up this morning, so happy you went out to catch fireflies. It’s those preciouse moments that make treasured memories. I would have gone out with you if I had been there! Hope your day is blessed in every way. -tara
Did they catch any? It is so so worth it!
Caleb is a adorable!
I LOVE catching fireflies, did you catch a bunch? I love the last picture of Caleb, what a sweetie. My camera is still broken.
That is one cute little guy! We just took a trip up to PA with our 21 year old daughter. She discovered an evening just filled with fireflies for the first time. She was enchanted and thought they looked like little fairies. She oohed and ahhed over them. She was suddenly a little girl. Fireflies make good memories.
that quote is so true, so amazingly true! and those pictures, Shanda, omgosh… priceless!!!!
Amen and Amen :o) My goal, when I was in your shoes, was to make choices that I would never regret. I suppose I wasn’t 100% successful at this, but it was a definate goal that I thought about every day. And it was always about the very sort of things you named…………you will NEVER regret letting your kids stay up 2 hours late and going out to catch fireflies with them! In the end, you got enough sleep and your book is still there. But the magic moment of last night will never be exactly repeated and now it is a magic memory to be savored for a lifetime.
Yep worth every second! Don’t waste any of them, they fly by quickly!
hugs
He is soooo cute!!! Your children are all beautiful! Don’t wish your “mothering” days to be over — it happens all too fast! Of course, we never stop “mothering” but it’s quite different when they’re grown and have their own families. We have to learn to be quiet sometimes! Hope you enjoy your new camera. I’m planning to take a class at the local community college to learn how to use mine better.
Gorgeous!!