My oldest daughter turned 14 this week. Before the end of August, I'll have a 16 yr-old, the aforementioned 14 yr-old, two 13 yr-olds, and a 9 yr-old.
When my wife and I had one toddler and one infant, people would tell us, "you'll blink and they'll be all grown up." And we said, "Whatever! Right now they wake up during the night, cry constantly, and need us to do everything! Every day feels like a marathon!"
Thirteen or so years later, I'm beginning to understand what they were talking about. Not to take anything away from those early days: many of them were hell. Those days were hard, and they seemed really long. But now, when I look at my children, those days seem far away. I've probably forgotten much more about them than I remember. My children are truly growing up. Tall. Smart. Funny. Independent. Creative. They think about things other teenagers think about. (Scary, yet great.) They think about the future ... about what they want to do. They think about boyfriends/girlfriends.
So different from when they were infants and toddlers. A friend once told me, "Enjoy the days when you can heal all their hurts with a kiss." Wise advice. Those days are truly gone. But the days I'm experiencing now are good. Surreal, but good. And I have some days when it seems like I blinked, and they've all grown up.
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