these are the best days of my life

before i had kids,
i didn't 'get' kids.
i was even known to say some pretty stupid things about kids,
(things that i wish i could take back now.)
even my own future kids.
one ridiculous thing i said was that i wanted to send my own kids away when they turned 5 and get them back when they turned 13.
WHAT!!??
who says that?
apparently someone who has never been a mother.
and someone who has never been a mother of children of those ages.
i have 2 children that fall into that age range now,
and they are every bit as enjoyable as they were in any previous stage,
maybe even more so.
but i have said that every stage so far.
this time i really mean it though.
this is the best stage so far.
they are so much more independent but still respectful.
their personalities are so much more evident,
and they do so much more.
and they can talk!
which means i understand them more.
our relationships have grown.
not that we didn't have a relationship before,
but now we have just had one longer.
i keep loving them more with every stage
because with more time we have more things to love.
but why are these the best days?
i realized it a few nights ago as each one of them made their way into our bed throughout the night.
as i lay awake with all 5 of us wedged into a queen bed
i recognized that there will come days when they may not desire to all be in bed with us.
there may simply come a day when we don't all fit.
i would freeze it all right here if i could.
because right now we all do fit.