Compared to most moms and dads who read this blog, I’m at the opposite end of the parenting timeline.

My son (who’s also my first-born) turns one today.  My wife and I are immersed in the stage that every parent must pass through—diapers, teething, sleep training, fussing, feedings, arranging childcare, first birthday, finding babysitters, learning the ropes, preserving your sanity, and soaking it all in.

The most common advice we hear from seasoned parents who successfully negotiated this phase long ago? “Enjoy it—it will be over before you know it.”

As much as we might not always see it now, there will inevitably be a time when we miss those days that our little guy slept in his crib and couldn’t do a single thing without us. And while most parents who read this blog are long past the diaper stage with their kids, this is exactly the same message I share with those of you who are going through the college admissions process—enjoy it, because it will be over before you know it.

You will only get to experience this time once with each of your kids. Watching your former baby apply to college, touring schools, celebrating acceptances, reveling in the reality that you’ve raised a healthy and responsible kid who’s ready to go make his or her place in the world by becoming a college freshman—these are milestones meant to be savored. Why ruin them by focusing only on the negatives, like which colleges said no, where your student could have improved, or how the results stack up against those of other families?

Parents, if you have a college applicant in the house, please remember that while you will always be Mom or Dad, this is the final stage before they’ll be off on their own. Think back on all those other phases—from newborn to child to teen—that you might not have taken the time to savor as much as you could have. Then resolve not to make that mistake in the final stage before they’re out of the house.

The more you enjoy it now, the less painful it will be when it’s over.