Seasons come and go in life. We all know that. But what we may not realize as young mothers is how we will experience the seasons of life our children will go through and the seasons we’ll go through as we raise them.

There are a few key things I’ve learned throughout the seasons of my children’s lives and motherhood:

1. Don’t look for the next season. Enjoy the now season. Because each of the seasons will pass sooner than you realize.
2. Every experience is an opportunity to learn, and your kids will teach you more than you think.
3. Time passes faster than you can imagine. Don’t blink. You might miss it.
4. The journey is long and hard. It’s worth every step along the way.

The Infant Season:

When I was a mother of infants, I marveled at the tiny beings entrusted to my care. Despite the sleepless nights and incessant nursing, I cherished the infant stage. There’s so much they are discovering and there are so many milestones they will reach in that first year or two of life. I loved midnight snuggles in the rocking chair. The smell of a baby fresh from a bath. Coos and giggles as they learned to make sounds.

How they looked at me. As if I was the only one who mattered in the world. With trust. Knowing they were safe in my arms.

Those first steps. First words. And the joy of life when someone doesn’t have a care in the world except to be fed, cleaned, or sleep.

And then, they turn two.

The Toddler Season:

Ah, the world of exploration. And potty training.

This new season brings the joy of repeating yourself at least twenty-one times a day. “Don’t touch that.” “No.” “What did Mommy tell you?” (Oh, did I forget to mention referring to yourself in third person?) This season is full of learning new things and exploring boundaries.

Many have used the term “terrible twos.” Take it from one who has experience (five times over). It’s not the “terrible twos.” The terribles hit at the age of four. When they have a clue that they can manipulate any adult human with one look.

At this stage, it becomes:

Temper tantrums in Walmart. Buying toys they will play with a handful of times or fewer because you want to appease them instead of listen to them cry. Leaving a basket full of groceries while you take them to the car for disciplinary action so the rest of Walmart doesn’t have to listen to them scream while you finish shopping. Teaching them meaningful lessons that you pray they will understand sooner than later. Because it feels like you’ve been teaching them the same lesson for a lifetime. Yes. Welcome to the toddler season of life.

While there are many tests and trials of patience during this season, there are many joys in it, as well. They are still snuggly, even as they push you away so they can try to do something themselves. They can feed themselves if you don’t mind cleaning up a mess or two and keep a close eye on them for choking hazards. And they do things like pooping behind a closed bedroom door, leaving a “surprise!” for Mommy to find after naptime. (I liken it to your pet bringing you a snake or a bird or a mouse and leaving it on your door mat as a love offering.) I promise you’ll still be laughing about that into their adulthood.

Rest assured, five is coming.

The Childhood Season (Ages 5-10):

This is another one of the fun seasons. This is the season where the lightbulb comes on, and you can clearly see it do so, because their eyes light up. It’s the season where they start grasping the lessons you’ve been drilling into them for the past two to three years. They start to realize that life doesn’t revolve around them. There’s a whole new world out there, and they’re ready to explore it!

First days of school. Childhood friends. Sunday school lessons. They begin to know how to relate to you and others around them.

They can now do more chores. Clean their rooms. Help with the dishes. Sweeping and mopping. Make their beds. Fold and put away clothes.

They want to spend time with Mom and Dad. Doing things. Learning from us. Experiencing life and developing talents and discovering their likes and dislikes.

And they still need Mom. My youngest son didn’t stop hugging me each time I dropped him off to school until he was in seventh grade. It’s nice to still be needed as they get that mature.

Because then they become pre-teens. And the season start passing faster and faster.

The Pre-teen or “Tween” Season (11-12):

This is when you don’t want to blink. This season goes by too quickly, but not quickly enough. Middle school (6th-8th grade, in most states), is the age of the rebel. This is the time in a teen’s life when they dive inward. It’s a time for self-discovery. And for most parents, it’s scary.

I can attest that it’s no easier for boys than it is for girls. I have both. While girls are worrying about their body shape and boys and the drama of friendships, the boys are worrying about their body shape and girls and the drama of friendship.

They also want to separate themselves from their mothers. It’s not cool to kiss your mom on her cheek when she drops you out of the car line onto the school curb. Nope. See ya later, Mom. (You’re not Mommy anymore.)

It’s hard to watch our kids pull away from our nurturing selves. But it’s even harder if we try to hold on for dear life. This is a season of building trust – on both our part and our kids’ parts.

Don’t blink. Because before you know it, they are going to be out on their own.

The Teen Season (13-19):

They say we become adults when we hit the age of 18, but I don’t buy it. Oh, when I was 18, I wanted it to be true. But in hindsight, I know now that true adulthood doesn’t start until the mid-20s. We still need our parents as we navigate high school and college and entering the workforce, getting married, and having our own kids. These seasons are ones we cannot (and should not have to) face alone.

Don’t let your kids fool you when they start to pretend to be adults. These are the people who know it all. And they will argue that they know what they’re talking about until you’re blue in the face, even though you know they don’t have a clue.

But other than that – and the occasional rebellion – and the occasional yelling-in-your-face-and-maybe-I’ll-punch-you-for-emphasis bout – this is a great season for moms to enjoy their kids.

This is a season of accomplishment or great failure.

It’s a time when we get to step up to the encourager plate and go to bat for our kids. We get to watch them go through trial and error after trial and error until they realize that they can’t keep doing the same thing over and over and over and expect a different result. No. They have to experience life for themselves and learn the lessons of consequences for their actions and words. Rather than insert ourselves in the middle of it and try to make it all right, we get to stand on the sideline and coach them through it.

I love living with my teenagers. I have five of them right now. All under one roof. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Because before I know it, they’re going to be flying the coop. (Two will be leaving shortly.)

And I’m going to be free to do whatever I please, when I please. And no one will be eating my hidden stash of (fill in the blank). Oh! And I may be able to find a AA battery when I need it – in the pack I bought instead of a video game controller.

The Season of the Empty Nest:

Is our nest ever truly empty? Yes, our kids grow up and move out and start their own adult lives. But they typically come back, don’t they?

There are times my husband and I have had to live with my parents because our housing situation came to a sudden end. I would imagine there may be some emergency in my childrens’ adult lives that may require me to open a bedroom in my home to them again for a short season.

And there’s always the grandkids and the great-grandkids. The neighbor’s kids. And the church kids. Also, the opportunity to foster or adopt. Do we ever truly not mother? I say no. Once a mother, always a mother. Regardless of the season you or your kids may be in.

So, which of the seasons of motherhood is your favorite? I’d say mine are the infant and teen years. I’d love to hear yours in the comments below!