I looked down at my fingernails and noticed my glittery gold polish was almost gone.
And it made me smile.
It was a reminder. A lovely reminder of being together with my family. Just a matter of days ago we were all together laughing and talking. Chloe, Audrey and I all sat in the noisy dining room around the 50’s style diner table and perused Krista’s delightful nail polish collection. We took turns choosing our favorite colors and then painted our nails slowly. We took time to let them dry before applying a second coat. We stopped to admire our beautiful creations and took a picture to remember the moment. Then we were onto our next activity.
It’s hard to only see my whole family once a year. There’s so much I feel like I need to cram into one weekend. I want to take pictures of everything, but then I worry that I’m missing out because all I’m doing is taking pictures. And then, inevitably, something doesn’t go as planned. I need to remember that I am still a Mom and wife and it’s asking a lot of my family to submerge themselves into a house of people they also only see once a year. There will be a temper tantrum or two. There will be missed naps. I will get stressed and snap at Tim. I spend weeks planning and plotting and anticipating and then I blink and it’s already done. I leave wishing I had talked more to each person. Wishing I had hugged each kid again. Wishing I had taken more pictures.
But today I looked down at those faded fingernails and smiled. It’s a good thing to wish I could see them more, because that just proves that I love them. In fact, I would be worried if I wasn’t sad at the end of the gatherings.
Very lovely post, Erica. You said it all for all of us! Since Dad and I see each family individually throughout the year, it is hard for us to remember that for the four of you “kids,” it is the only time you see each other. I really hope we can continue these annual gatherings forever!