Someone has well said the days are long but the years are short. This expression must have been written for parents with small children. Parenting last for a lifetime but there is no doubt that these early years are extremely important. This post by Dane Ortlund is excellent:
“Tiny kids are hard. By tiny I mean the first, say, three years of life. The age when they are factories of need and vacuums of love, yet can’t even offer the decency of an occasional “thank you.”
The endless demands of parenting little ones can feel heightened by the fact that this is often the very season of life—late 20s through the 30s—when budding careers are most demanding and precarious. The need to be tirelessly devoted outside the home can tempt young parents to be less devoted inside the home.”