The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Mother

We did it!  John and I have officially raised one child to adulthood.  Done with one...Okay, you know I'm not serious, right?  We are never really done parenting, ask my mom!  But I still feel a sense of accomplishment.  Bailey is an "adult" according to law. He turned 18 years old this past Tuesday.  Seems a bit surreal.  We all can remember the little bright eyed, blond baby and toddler like it was yesterday.  It seems like the years in between are a total blur.  Somehow, it's like magic, suddenly he's a young man, 5'10, articulate, intelligent, talented, and on his way out the door to college.  He was also accepted into National Honor Society this week, something his dad and I never accomplished (even though I had good grades in high school, I never had THOSE kinds of grades!).  He's got interesting opinions on life, that are usually the total opposite of mine, but I think that's the way it is suppose to be!  We couldn't lov...

It's October, fall has begun and each year, at this time, I reflect a bit on where we are as a family. I think it's because Bailey's birthday is in October (he's turning 18!!!!) and that's the day John and I went from a couple, to family. I look back at those times and think how much simpler it was to have babies and little ones, in some ways. When you are in the throws of raising babies and toddlers, you think nothing can be more difficult. The teen years arrive and you wish for the tantrums in the grocery store, over the tears of a broken hearted teen. Instead of deciding on which preschool or Kid's Day out program, we are deciding on which university will offer the best scholarship. And so the saying "Bigger kids, bigger problems." returns again and again to my head. Each of these seasons in life brings about new joy and new worries. I wonder with amazement that my oldest child becomes an "adult", 18 years old in just over two weeks. He...