Simple Moments Make the Best Memories

If the past three years have taught us anything, it’s that the season of parenthood is all too brief. Countless people have advised us to slow down, to enjoy every moment, and to savor the fleeting, sometimes exhausting, yet always heartwarming, years of childrearing because our kids’ childhood will pass so quickly. This reminder has encouraged both of us to rethink our personal and professional priorities. We now realize that our careers do not define us and that the house doesn’t always have to be immaculate (in fact, dust protects the furniture, right?), the laundry can wait another day (or two!), and store-bought rotisserie chicken and pre-made sides do constitute a home-cooked meal. Hopefully, by adopting a “family first” philosophy and reframing what is important to us, we won’t look back on our parenting years with guilt or regret because we were inaccessible either physically or emotionally while our children were at home.

Our family website, particularly the title, “Moments that Matter,” was inspired by the discovery that the most memorable moments aren’t necessarily the milestone events, but rather the simple, everyday moments. We’ve found that the little gestures or simple moments such as picking dandelions, playing hide-and-seek, holding hands while reading a bedtime story, eating ice pops on the deck, feeding the ducks at the local park, and dancing together in the family room are often the ones that make the biggest impact and leave the most lasting impression. So, while our children’s “firsts” deserve to be documented and celebrated, we also wanted a way to capture the simple, everyday moments that touched our hearts.

I’ll leave you with one example that is particularly near and dear to my heart. When Ryan was about 9 months old and embodied that precarious combination of newfound mobility and endless curiosity, we decided it was time to childproof the house above and beyond the customary outlet plugs and toilet and cabinet door locks (although “childproof” is a misnomer since they can always find something hazardous to get into!). Given Ryan’s adventurousness and desire to explore, Mike decided it would be wise to remove the Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium toy from his crib so he couldn’t use it as a way to launch himself out. Armed with his tool box (since assembly and deconstruction of baby toys is never as parent-friendly as one would expect), Mike got to work. Immediately, Ryan clumsily crawled into Mike’s lap, snuggled in, and wrapped his chubby little baby hand around the screwdriver to “help.” Mike looked up at me with tears in his eyes and said, “It’s moments like this that I hope I never forget.” And, it’s moments like these that we want to preserve and share with all of you, because we believe the richness of life lies in the simple, everyday moments.