My babies. My world.
My God.
I just can’t come to grips with the horrible Sandy Hook shooting tragedy that took place last Friday. I am still in shock thinking how vulnerable we all are. But never thought children could end up in harms way simply by going to school and being present that day. As the horrific event unfolded my heart truly hurt for the parents who lost babies – from ages 5 to 10 years old. Teachers acted as heroes, throwing their bodies in the line of fire just to protect their students.
It made me think: how long do any of us have here with our kids?
In April I attended Disney Social Media Moms and remember one presenter making it clear that we truly only have 18 summers with our kids before they’re grown and off on their own. And as time counts down, those summers become shorter. My daughter Kaitlin is 10 years old already. So that means there are 8 more summers before she’s grown and on her way. That’s not a long time. And factor in that you have crazed maniacs out there, like the loose cannon in Connecticut, who could take that precious time from us and it makes us think harder about what’s important in life.
And then today, Monday, our kids had to head back to school now knowing that the place we constantly tell them is a safe haven may not be as safe as we have proposed. It’s been hard to explain this tragedy to my kids although I have reassured them again and again that they are safe. But thankfully there are terrific teachers all across the county making millions of kids feel safe and at ease today. And Drew Nichols Nesbitt is one of them.
Mrs. Nesbitt is my daughter Mikaela’s 3rd grade teacher and she is just amazing. I love her spirit and Mikaela loves her immensely. Mrs. Nesbitt today decided to throw out the lesson plans and just have a “don’t worry, be happy” day at school to take the edge off of the whole Sandy Hook ordeal. And for that, SHE is my SHEro. She is a mom of three beautiful girls and she said she was overwhelmed by the tragedy and cried all weekend, like we all did, and thought about what would make the kids feel a little bit better after having to digest the horrific events that occurred over the weekend. I appreciate Mrs. Nesbitt for making Mikaela feel great because Mikaela came home on cloud nine talking about how much fun she had at school. THAT is the way a kid is supposed to feel. Not feel like their life is threatened or fear being at school. Mrs. Nesbitt did a wonderful thing for the kids and I am forever indebted to her for that.
It’s times like this that makes me so happy that I am present in my kids life. I am around them all the time and take pleasure in the fact that I get to take them to some amazing places and events regularly. I love them and will make sure that my time with them is well spent. Spend more quality time with them. Sometimes we will just sit and talk about what’s on their mind. And I’ll make sure that we have more family night where we all pile up in my bed and watch a movie together. Yes, ALL OF US.
I want to relish every single possible moment with my babies. Hug them tighter. Kiss them more. Tell them I love them every chance I get. We all should. We just never, ever know what awaits us. However, let’s not live in fear. Let’s LIVE and LOVE and make the most of every moment.
Peace to all the families and the children and adults lives lost in the Sandy Hook tragedy.
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