Currently….

You know that saying, "The days are long but the years are short"? It really hit me this past Sunday. Willow, my little 1.5-year-old, decided naptime was for the weak during our drive home from Tahoe. But while the football game hummed in the background when we arrived home, she nestled into my husband's lap and passed out. Something she has not done in months.

I marveled at her legs that once could be scooped up in our arms, now dangling off my husband—and it hit me: my baby is no longer a baby anymore.

It's weird, isn't it? How when you're knee-deep in motherhood, every minute can feel like an eternity. Like when you count down the seconds until bedtime, or when a quick car ride feels like a cross-country trip because your baby refuses to stop screaming. But those moments, as teeth-grindingly long as they are, they're temporary.

Motherhood is like one big paradox, a collection of fleeting eternities. Just when you think you've got it all mapped out, your toddler throws you a curveball that knocks your compass way off course. And suddenly, you have to learn to navigate a whole new terrain.

This reflection isn't about nostalgia or longing for what once was. It's about the celebration of growth—for Willow and me.

Motherhood didn't steal my identity; it revealed it. Through sleepless nights and messy mealtimes, it shows me patience, it tests my limits, and it makes me resilient. It’s motherhood that taught me how to stand strong in who I am, not who I'm told to be.

So here's my words of wisdom for my fellow moms in the trenches—the new moms, the working moms, the we've-got-this-down-to-a-science moms:

• Your journey is uniquely yours—cherish it.

• The hard parts? They're not forever.

• Every stage is a new adventure—embrace it.

Willow's little nap on my husband's lap wasn't just a momentary pause in a busy day; it was a gentle nudge, reminding me that time marches on, and with it, we march too, into a chapter brimming with new beginnings and rich with self-discovery.

And to you, the mom reading this while feeding your baby or hiding for a moment of peace in the bathroom—know this: you're not just surviving. You're evolving. And like those long days and short years, you’re doing something extraordinary—you're growing up alongside your baby.