What Do Doggies, Summer, and Babies Have in Common?

Little One adores the dogs with the over-exuberance of a toddler. Sometimes, as they wander by, She leaps out at them, wraps Her arms around their bodies and hugs too tight. They wriggle onward, pulling slowly through Her arms until She is left squeezing tight to their tail, hanging on as long as She can before it slips through too.
That's what we've all been doing around here, with Summer. Folding it into us as it keeps moving past, squeezing every last bit of summery-ness out of it we can as it slipped away.
There have been trips to the fair, hiking in woods and by rivers, carnivals, parades, swimming and jumping through sprinklers, evenings at the park, picking juicy fruit at orchards, petting calves at the farms, concerts in the town square, popsicles made from leftover watermelon juice.
Little One is growing and Her babyhood has slipped away too, like the summer. Leaving us to wonder all the same things; did we take it for granted? Did we enjoy every moment? Make enough sweet memories? Take enough pictures? Stop taking pictures long enough to be present?
I know how Little One feels when She's left standing there calling after the dogs. I want to ask Her the same things She's thinking about them. Why can't you slow down, just a little bit? Why can't I hold on to you as long as I want, just like this?
But they go. She grows. The leaves are starting to turn.
The only thing to do is follow Her lead on these things. Watch them go, pout a little, move on to the next thing. The summer is over and my sweet baby is just a couple weeks from being two. Two! Two?! I suppose it's time to hold on to Her two-ness as hard as I can, make some apple cider and jump in some piles of leaves. I guess it's a good consolation prize that even though we can't keep all the moments we love, there are so many more to love around the corner.