I used to rush through bedtime with my kids. Then I realized every routine has a last time.

The author (not pictured) said she knows there will be a last time her kids want her to read to them at night.

Keeping that in mind helps her get through hard moments.

AnVr/Getty Images I'm a mom of two kids under 3, and so much of parenting lives in the ordinary moments.

It's easy to find yourself rushing through the repetitive, everyday parts without meaning to.

I'm learning to slow down and be more present, even on the nights I'm the one nodding off at bedtime.

Before I had kids , I would picture the moments I was most excited for.

The feeling of a tiny hand tucked into mine while walking through a parking lot.

Pushing my baby on a swing over and over again to get a glimpse of a gummy smile.

The sweet, somewhat obvious stuff that you dream up when you're imagining what motherhood will feel like.

What's harder to picture beforehand are the everyday pieces of parenthood that I can see now that I have two kids, both under 3.

Bedtime routines with three or more book requests every night.

All the "5 more minutes" pleas at the library.

Invitations to come play trucks when you're so close to having the dishwasher completely emptied.

Some mornings, I look around, and my living room floor is covered in blocks, there's a pile of laundry that has been "almost done" for three days, and I'm moving through the mental tabs of everything I need to get done before I'm asked for a snack.