Part of Growing Up

I thought life would slow down a bit as my kids grew. Boy, was I wrong! I think it only picks up the pace with sports, extracurricular activities, and social circles. With smaller children, you can control their environment more, it seems.  This is not the case with teens and tweens!

I am doing a lot more driving. I don’t feel like I live in my car (yet) but I do feel like it’s becoming a better friend!

I smiled the other day when my daughter thanked me for picking her up somewhere. Out of the blue. All on her own. No prompting from me. It was noticed and I really appreciated it. I don’t mind driving to and from places if I feel my children notice the extra efforts it takes to do so. It takes a big chunk of time out of my day and so I hope they will learn to be a little more patient during those times when I’m behind on laundry or I haven’t made a decent meal in a week.

There’s another aspect to being busy with growing kids that should be focused on – and that is my attitude. If I want my kids to respect the time I invest in driving them around, I too, must respect their agendas. Not all of the things they do or go to are their choices. Sports meetings, open houses, science fairs, etc…. are not what they would prefer to be doing with their time. So if I grumble or complain; it’s unfair to them and it’s unfair to me.

These years have gone by so quickly. I only have a few more left before my kids decide to do heaven-knows-what, heaven-knows-where!  And I want them to look back and feel like I not only participated and was there for a lot of their activities and functions – but that I enjoyed them.  I want them to understand that I’m thankful I have kids to drive around. I’m thankful for the car time to hear what kind of music they like, what is going on at school or with their friends, and what last minute stories or thoughts roll off their tongues that I might never have heard otherwise.

I want to be there for them. Not just in body, but in spirit and soul. I want to enjoy these times. So whether or not I’m running in or out the door; I want to smile and know that life will someday be so different and I will miss these full days filled with laughter, noise, and yes – even teen drama. It’s all a part of growing up and I’m thankful that I get to be a part of it.