Ages and Stages

As I was *gracefully* hauling Lincoln in his car seat out to the car after church today I overheard a woman telling her elderly mother,

"I am so glad I am done with that stage."

That comment has replayed in my head several times today. I was not upset by this in any way, but it did get me thinking about stages. Like it or not, we are all going through a specific "stage" in our lives right now. Mine is the "take care of my kids 24/7 and try to squeeze in enough time for my husband and a little time for myself as well" stage.

I had several conversations today at church with different moms at all different stages of life:

One mom was telling me that after reading about Creighton's fish she began thinking about being honest with her kids and told me about a specific time she had lied to them about eating food...no, those aren't carrots..just orange beans...anyways, this conversation soon went into her telling me that she was worried for her child- who is living at home post-college with no job.

Another friend was talking to me and questioning if she should be letting her high school daughter read fantasy books that some think are not appropriate.

In the nursery, I was talking to a friend who was concerned that her (sweet and most precious!) little baby's umbilical cord was infected.

Another lady at church was trying to find care for her elderly mother for a few days while she went out to visit her daughter in Virginia.

Talk about Stages! We are all going through it!

When reflecting on today I realized this; no mater what age or stage we are in, there are friends there to listen. I was so glad I was able to listen to and talk to so many different people today. I also realized that when it comes to moms, age doesn't really matter. Whether we count our kid's ages by weeks or decades, we all just really want to do what is best for our kids. And we all just need someone to listen.