10/03/2025
This week, the American Girl catalog showed up in the mail.
In years past, this was a big day for my daughter—she would examine every page, carefully circling her favorites, contemplating which doll she should put on her Christmas list. One year she even saved enough to buy one herself.
This year, I asked her if she wanted to look at it. “Should I keep it, or do you want me to throw it away?”
My breath caught in my chest while I waited for her response - even though I knew what it would be.
Without even glancing up, she said, “Uhhh…you can throw it away.”
“Are you sure?” I think I was asking for me, not her.
“Yeah, I’m good.”
And just like that, another little season of childhood slipped quietly into the next.
*deep breath *
Motherhood is like that…One moment we’re holding them on our chest for the very first time, breathing in that brand-new baby smell, and the next, we’re realizing they’ve outgrown something that once felt so important.
God gave us Moms the gift (and sometimes the ache) of feeling it all so deeply—the snuggles, the belly laughs, the long nights, and yes, even the goodbyes to old stages.
If you’re in or about to be in the newborn or baby season right now, friend, soak it up.
Savor the middle-of-the-night cuddles. Kiss their cheeks a hundred times. Let yourself be fully present, because these moments really do go faster than we ever expect.
And when you want something tangible to hold on to—something that will take you back to the way their tiny fingers curled around yours or the way their head fit perfectly on your shoulder—that’s what photographs are for.
They become the little time machines that transport us back to those days long after our babies are grown.
As for me, I’ll throw the catalog away tomorrow. Maybe. 🤍
