Things I’ll Miss About Having Little Kids

My kids are getting bigger, and I’m having a hard time dealing with it! Here’s a post about things I’ll miss about having little kids that’s a great read for any mom struggling in the thick of it!

You know those moments when you’re in the middle of it all, about to fall apart, and you realize that one day you’ll look back on these days and miss them? As my kids get bigger, I have those moments more and more.

Sometimes they happen when you’re wishing you could be done with a particular stage, and sometimes they happen when you’re enjoying a moment and suddenly realize you may not have many more like it.

They are moments you wish you could freeze forever. Moments that come and go quickly. Moments that as parents, we’ll all look back on and miss one day.

Having little kids is such a joyful, hilarious, exhausting, unique, and demanding time in our lives, and as much as I’m excited for my kids to grow up, it’s also really hard watching them get bigger.

I recently realized that our kids are out of the baby and toddler stages. Our youngest is three, and if I wasn’t homeschooling my other two kids, he’d be in preschool two days a week. I don’t change diapers anymore, I don’t breastfeed anymore, I don’t feel tiny kicks in my belly or have to wake up at night and rock my babies back to sleep. My kids are getting big, and there are a lot of things I’m really going to miss about having little kids.

I’m going to miss waking up early to a tiny face by the side of my bed whispering “I have to go potty.”

I’m going to miss sticky hands, faces, and tables.

I’m going to miss high pitched, squeaky voices talking non-stop and jabbering on about everything that pops into their little minds.

I’m going to miss being tired because I slept on the floor next to my baby’s crib.

I’m going to miss snuggling during naptime, when my littles would curl up and try to burrow deep into my arms.

I’m going to miss hot baby breath right in my face.

I’m going to miss playing Legos on the floor, digging through giant bins of Legos looking for exactly the right one for my kids.

I’m going to miss reading picture books and singing songs before bed.

I’m going to miss packing school lunches and sneaking in treats every once in a while to brighten my kids’ days.

I’m going to miss going through laundry, spraying stains from melting popsicles and rolling in the grass.

I’m going to miss brushing little teeth with tiny toothbrushes and bubble-gum flavored toothpaste.

I’m going to miss holding hands on walks, at the mall, at the store, and in parking lots.

I’m going to miss buckling little bodies into car seats, making sure they’re safe and secure before driving around town.

I’m going to miss the silliness, the laughs, the faces, and the goofy made-up jokes.

I’m going to miss that sweet, fresh, newborn smell.

I’m going to miss soft, fine hair and my kids letting me run my fingers through it when we sit together.

I’m going to miss getting endless gifts of flowers, leaves, and rocks.

I’m going to miss encouraging them to climb to the top of the slide and then catching them at the bottom after the slide down giggling.

I’m going to miss folding tiny clothes fresh out of the dryer.

I’m going to miss watching them run to me and excitedly exclaim “I did it!” when they do something new for the first time.

I’m going to miss making breakfast and lunch for them each day.

I’m going to miss snuggles after bath time.

I’m going to miss taking selfies together, using silly filters and making goofy faces.

I’m going to miss having dance parties to loud, annoying songs that consequently get stuck in my head for days.

I’m going to miss helping my kids with their clothes, putting socks and shoes on in the day and pulling shirts over heads at night.

I’m going to miss being gifted pictures constantly.

I’m going to miss gumless smiles, first teeth coming in, and wiggly teeth falling out.

I’m going to miss holding hands up and down the stairs and walking slow so their tiny legs can keep up.

I’m going to miss watching kids’ sports games and dance recitals.

I’m going to miss the pure, carefree sound of belly laughs.

I’m going to miss tiny voices singing the wrong notes and wrong words to their favorite songs.

I’m going to miss soft baby skin.

I’m going to miss putting bandaids on scratched knees and being the one they run to when they get owies.

I’m going to miss tiny, flat bums.

I’m going to miss onesies.

I’m going to miss they way they run when they’re little, arms flapping, feet stomping, giggling wildly.

I’m going to miss having little kids.

Having little kids isn’t always easy. There are plenty of moments where I’ve been scared, felt inadequate, and hid in the bathroom to get a moment’s peace.

But having little kids is such a magical part of parenting, and while it’s easy to say you can’t wait for your kids to get bigger, you’ll quickly realize that you miss those days once they are bigger.

So I’m holding on to all those little moments, little things, and little hands. It’s not all cuddles and belly laughs, but I don’t want to forget a moment of what it’s like to have little kids.