1 Down, 5 To Go...

Well, our 18yo has done something we honestly never thought she would. She has graduated high school. This may sound like a simple task if your not dealing with teenagers yet, but trust me, its not. She's lucky to have lived this long. As I like to constantly remind my children, "Things could always be worse." We didn't have to deal with the courts or rehab. And we did survive several "over 18" boyfriends, one runaway incident, academic counseling through a few grades, and police officers visiting on occasion. But nothing I would consider "serious", just a little nerve racking. And our 17yo is right behind her, as a senior this coming 09-10 school year. We are proud of them both. My husband and I laughed to each other sitting there in our seats waiting for the graduation ceremony to begin. Laughed at the long tunnel that seemed to have no light at the end. The battles over what horrible and restrictive parents we are and how we couldn't possibly understand what she was going through. When we were starting out, I thought I would be at an advantage to other parents, older parents, who seemed disconnected from their teens, because I was a young mother. Somehow the fact that I was only 18yrs older than my first was going to mean I could relate better to the kids and we'd bond differently. I ignored the warnings about becoming my children's' friend. Boy, was I wrong! If you are reading this and just starting out, trust me, they know what they are talking about. Its sad that its one of those things we just have to learn for ourselves. Its hard when the children are little and we bond as parents, enjoying their innocence, to not want to be their friends. It has taken this long for me to realize my error, and I fear its too late to correct it for my younger kids. I say this so maybe, somehow, you can benefit from it. Now I'm the one trying to pass learned experience down. Wow, time flies.