Reminiscing at the latest birthday.

Just one more candle...

We celebrated Zach's birthday recently and it was a sort of milestone.  I was chatting with a new acquaintance recently and he mentioned to me that he had 3 children under 7.
I paused for a moment and considered this measure.
"We've had 3 under 7 for the last 15 years!" I replied.  But that is no more.
Now Zach is 4, we have no more nappies, less shared night-times with the Starfish sleeping technique of babies, no night time feeding and many more activities that a 4 year old is now too old for.
He and Martin are playing much more together, rather than having occasional fights for control over a shared toy.
For 22 years of being parents we always have had a new younger one bringing up the rear while we handled new adventures with the older children. We are now in a new phase.  Not better or worse, just different.  Again.

Puddles are for jumping

It is a great adventure, privilege and honour to be able to be such a part of a family.  Being able to share so many of our experiences together, through homeschooling, running a business, and generally living the busy life of 10 people is a great blessing.
Too often we think of family life and children primarily in terms of their costs and responsibilities. But I think this is missing the point.  We are told that children are a great gift and will be of great benefit to us. I suspect much of that beneficial nature is lost when you focus incorrectly.  It's a bit like pointing a camera using manual focus and not knowing you have to move the lens to see better.
Initially the object of your focus is blurry and indistinct, but as you turn the lens you suddenly see all the good bits and soon all the non essential parts can be ignored as the focus is on the gift - and then on the gift giver.