What a personal question? Is it possible that there is a “right” answer to when is the “right time” to have children? No, but I know what my answer was.

My mother, a wise woman, offered me advice when I married my husband. She told me to know myself as a wife before introducing kids.

She absolutely wanted grandchildren. My husband and I were just 24 and 22 respectively when we married, and we had some time.

So, I listened. We took the first 8 years of our married lives just getting to know each other. When we finally called my mom and dad to tell them we were pregnant, my mother was genuinely thrilled. She never once pressured us to have kids, she never once asked when we would. She knew we wanted them, and she knew we were following her advice.

Those 8 years also allowed me to explore my career, find my talents, build my network. Now my husband and I have been married nearly 20 years. We have 3 sons, ages 9, 7, and 4. I have a 17 year career that has allowed me to contribute to the world my boys live in, and allowed me to show them that women are just as capable as men.

When I hear Trace Adkins sing You’re Gonna Miss This, it reminds me of this wisdom my mother shared with me.