When you’re expecting a baby, rest assured at least one person will go out of their way to tell you, with great sincerity and emotion, this terribly cliché sounding advice: “Enjoy every moment with your kid because they grow up fast.” I used to get a chuckle out of this comment for a couple reasons: (a Time couldn’t go any slower than when you’re baking a bun in the oven; and (b I’m pretty sure they didn’t mean to enjoy the meconium diaper changing moments. I hadn’t even given birth yet and veteran parents everywhere were making me feel like I was packing my son’s hatchback for college.

Driving home from the hospital, I was already looking forward to his first smile, his first laugh, and the first time he’d be able to see past the end of his nose. Being inexperienced at motherhood, I wanted to fast-forward to the part when he would be less fragile, more awake, and honestly, the part where he didn’t cry with colicky tummy from 8pm until midnight. But at the same time, I loved comforting him, nourishing him, and worrying obsessively about things like how many ounces were going in and how many were coming out.

When my maternity leave ended and I started spending my days and nights at the advertising agency I worked for, suddenly my son was growing up way too fast. I learned about his milestones and his daily fecal output on little notes written by graduate students at the daycare center. And on those all too frequent nights that I had to work late, I’d rush home to find my little guy already zonked out in his crib. That’s when I remembered the unsolicited words those experienced parents had told me, and I thought maybe they had a pretty good point.

I soon realized that if I couldn’t find some kind of life and career balance for myself, I was going to wake up one day to find grandchildren raiding my cookie jar. My husband and I decided that for us, the right balance was ditching our corporate jobs to start a little company on our own. The truth is, we work a million times harder now than we ever did before. But the odds are stacked in our favor that we’ll actually be there when the teeth fall out, the knees get scraped, the homework gets finished and the just-iced sugar cookies fall upside down on the floor.

My son will turn eight years old this year. As I watch his lanky little arms try to steady the milk carton over his cereal bowl, I can hardly believe how quickly time has raced by. It sure has been fun. I’ve taught myself not to focus on the things I’ve missed, but instead, to focus on the moments I can be a part of right now. There are milestones, achievements, failures and dreams at every age. And it’s never too late to jump in and enjoy a good game of Go Fish.

Yesterday, I found myself in line behind a pregnant woman at the grocery store. Before I could even stop myself, the words about enjoying every moment just leapt out of my mouth. And there they hung between us, the veteran and the rookie, in an awkward and familiar silence. To my amazement, I had become exactly like every advice-wielding parent before me. I chuckled as I walked to my car, knowing full well she wouldn’t hear what I had said until years from now.

-Kelly Sopp

Kelly is the co-founder of Wry Baby and co-author of Safe Baby Handling Tips. She and her husband, David, create humorous infant apparel and gifts designed to make parenting fun.