Taking a Moment to Smile :)

This evening as I was going through the same ol' after-work routine of dinner and cleaning while trying to keep the boys happy until bedtime, I had a moment that made me stop and smile. A mommy moment, I guess. My 4-1/2 yr old son, Brendan, had asked to go play outside, like he often does these days. We live in a country setting, on 10 acres, so it's pretty safe around here. As always, I popped outside after a few minutes to check on him. And as usual, he was sitting in the back of our old pickup truck playing. Why it struck me any different tonight than any of the other countless nights, I'm not sure. But as I stood on the porch watching him play, I had to smile. He didn't know I was watching him, and I stood there quietly just looking at him. When did he get so big? When did he go from needed me every second, to being able to play in the back of the truck and entertain himself? When did that little boy get so independent? The every day grind of working full-time and being a wife & mom has really been getting to me these last couple years, especially now with 2 kids...and in my attitude I'm sure it shows. And now, here he is, he has turned into a big boy right before my eyes. So tonight I stood there admiring my son. Admiring his independence and his great sense of imagination, and how he could be so content entertaining himself with a stick in one hand and a water hose nozzle in the other in the back of the truck- his favorite playhouse. I got the camera and took some pictures of him in the truck. Being a scrapbooker, I know those pictures can tell a story, and will hopefully make a good layout! (lol). It's just one of those every day occurances, but I realized that even something so simple, as playing in the back of the pickup, is an important part of his world right now. And lately, I certainly have not stopped often enough to take notice of things like this. But tonight I did, and it brought me a smile :)