Remember the {Lasts}

Someone once told me that we always remember the {firsts}, but always wish we could remember the {lasts}...like the last time your child will ever sit on your lap, the last time your husband kissed you good-bye, the last time you ate your grandma's cooking.  Well...I didn't realize last summer would be a summer of {lasts} and when it hit me it was, like most {lasts}, devastating.  Last year our youngest daughter graduated from high school.  She's a hard worker, just like her sister and brother, so they all worked diligently through the summer in preparation for the fall.  It was a whirlwind summer as we celebrated our first granddaughter's birthday and welcomed a new grandson into the world.  We also planned and executed a wedding in less than a week!  So LOTS of memories were made...but in that whirlwind I didn't remember the {lasts}.  The last night Katy crawled into bed before we retired to chat (she used to do that a lot), the last time Matt would call our house his home (he didn't come home this summer), the last time Treena used her maiden name, the last time I hugged my sister-in-law before she left (I couldn't have survived the wedding without her).  So this summer I vowed 2 things...be present and thoughtful in every day in order to recognize the {lasts} and plan one event where we can escape work and the everyday hassles of life to just focus on US as a family.  I'm sure I've already missed some {lasts} this summer, but I do try!  I'm very much looking forward to the next 5 days of focusing on MY family because time does NOT stand still!

Lake Pend Oreille here we come!