Dinner

Due to scheduling conflicts, my mom hosted our family Thanksgiving dinner today instead of Thursday.

It was a fairly small gathering of nine adults and five kids.

As we adults were sitting around thinking about loosening our belts (I kid, I wasn't even wearing a belt) I marveled at the fact that none of the kids were in the kitchen, pestering their parents for attention, needing to potty, wanting something to drink.

Instead, Alyssa and Julie were in my mom's back bedroom, exercising. My mom has a treadmill and an eliptical and the girls were taking turns using each machine. They're so cute when they're nine.

The little kids were going back and forth from the middle bedroom to the living room. They were playing pirate and princesses. Jaxon declared that there was no way he was going to be a princess, hence the pirate part of the game.

It's taken almost six whole years for us to get to the point where the kids will run off and entertain themselves but it's so lovely.

Yes, we still get requests for help with something but none of us is at that stage of parenthood where the kids need constant supervision and attention.

Those moments when I sort of mourne the fact that my childbearing days are over? They're fading quickly and are helped along by days like this, when the kids are kids, running around, laughing, playing, not needing us quite so much.

Though I do confess that it was lovely to be needed as Olivia fell asleep with her head in my lap, her hand clasping mine. I do still enjoy taking care of my kidlets. I'm just glad the diaper days are in the past.