Who ME??

Who ME?  Um, are you SURE?  I'm not sure at all!  I don't know what to write.  I don't know if I CAN write.  I feel inadequate to say much about any topic to anyone - and really.... who cares what I have to say?  All those thoughts are swirling through my head tonight.  My niece has asked me if I would contribute to her website Her View From Home.  It is a great and growing site, and as I read what others who contribute write there, I'm not sure that I have what it takes.  Ah, the pressure!  What I have been asked to write about is being the mother of older children.  Like teenagers.  Hmmmm...  I guess I am one of those - the mom part.  And, I do have three of those - the teenager part.  Let's see if I can put some thoughts down here to throw out into all of cyberspace.

Being the mom of teenagers is exciting.  I have made it through all the diaper changes, bottom wiping, nose checking, mess cleaning, no time to myself stages that comes with babies and toddlers.  I no longer walk around smelling of peanut butter, and my shirts don't have weird and unknown stains on them in the shoulder area.  As much as I hate to say it, though - those days were easier in many ways than the challenges that the teenagers bring with them.

The emotions!  Mood swings abound!!  I have three kids, and three very distinct personalities represented within my little family.  One is the very silent type who I have to work, and work, and WORK to get any conversation (read: Information!) out of.  Then, there is the one who shares each and every thought that happens to enter the brain.  And, between the two is one who is a mix of both - and I never know which side of that personality I may end up sharing the day alongside.   My wonderful husband is always amazed at how I can be in a wonderful mood myself at 2:00 in the afternoon, but by 3:45, when one or more of the teens has returned home from a school day, my stress level may be through the roof.  There are emotional highs and lows, and I love it that they share it with me -- that's why I am home with them -- but, at the same time the toll can be very draining on a mom.  Often times I get to enjoy the ride of zero to sixty in the few seconds as they come through the door - one telling me with great emotion about how the day had been ruined by a random remark of a friend, one assuring me that yes, I do in fact have all the information about the upcoming event that I don't even know the slightest detail about, and one already upset because the sibling interrupted the story being told.  It is exhausting!

Back to the excitement.  They are old enough to do things on their own.  And that can make a mom's heart happy/sad/scared/proud all in the same breath.  They get to go to school events that I no longer have to sponsor, and I may or may not even know about before they happen.  They get to go to dances, and lock-ins.  They achieve great milestones and have wonderful successes that require nothing from me other than a gentle reminder that they have to meet the deadline.

I have lived through teaching my kids to drive - at least two of them.  At one point I was all for having the legal driving age upped to 18!  Then, I got a taste of the freedom that comes along with their ability to get themselves (and/or a sibling) to the next event.  Oh my!!  Every time the vehicle pulls away with my baby behind the wheel there is a prayer said, but how I enjoy the fact that they are responsible enough to have the privilege.

So, I guess I'm not quite sure what to talk about.  (write about?)   Forgive me for all the randomness here.  There are lots of topics to choose from:  the "what age do we" decisions... like when to get a phone, when are they allowed to get their own Facebook page, curfews, etc.  Or, do I go down the path of lessons learned along the way regarding friends, school, moral decisions, and the like?  I am willing to write about most anything - just not sure where to begin, I guess.

My oldest will start college in August.  My second will be a 10th grader this fall, and the third child will be completing the final year of middle school.  Even typing that out makes me pause.  How did they get that old?  And, the truly amazing thing (as I tell all my friends) is that they age, but I don't.  Ha!   I have read that we never really grow up, we just learn how to act in public.  I think that is true!!  I hope as a mom of teenagers I have taught them the lessons of how to act in public, but still enjoy life and all it has to offer with the gusto of youth.