On Savoring Slow - A First Birthday Reflection

Our baby girl’s first birthday is fast approaching, and I find myself wanting to slow everything down. If you know me, then you know I don’t have a slow mode. I don’t talk slow, I don’t move slow, and I don’t think slow. 

For some perspective on my need for speed, my husband literally loves nothing more than a Friday night when he finds me snuggled up with a slice of pizza and a glass of wine on the couch (a weighted blanket may or may not be present). Life with littles doesn’t typically move at a snail’s pace, so I’ve grown accustomed to a breakneck speed. 

But here, in the thin space before our baby turns one, I am desperately wanting to slow every second down. I want to savor the slobbery kisses and remaining sleepless nights. I want the bottle and crawling to never end because, as soon as this baby girl finds her footing, she’s going to fly. 

One of my closest friends operates best in slow mode, and she has always been unashamed of it. She truly knows how to stay present and savor the moment in a way that feels like time slows down. She also embodies peace like no one else I know and offers it to those around her. 

And so, while "Time and tide wait for no man," I am seeking a way to savor slow this summer. I’m searching for the ways that having this little one offers me a chance to see miracles in mundane moments—to rock her sweet, sweaty head just a few more seconds, to cherish the baby babble and the changing table, because before I know it, these sacred moments will be sweet memories.