Ahhh..the Joy of Parenting...

Parenting can be so backwards. For example, when my girls were little, they were always up way too early. At that time, I needed my sleep and never seemed to get enough. They kept me running all day, busy here, busy there, never seeming to want to just rest awhile. Now that they are older, and so am I, all they want to do is sleep and all I want to do is run run run! And believe me, I don't like to wait for them to get ready. At least when they were little, I picked out their clothes, dressed them, and stuck them in the car. Now its, "where is my i-pod?", "my hair-ugh!!", "Can I borrow your shoes?", "I can't find my shoes", and on and on until I am tempted to leave without them! Imagine showing up at the orthodonist by myself because my kids aren't ready. I know, it's foolish, but most points made by parents are based in something very smart. Most of them.

While I used to complain about all the messes they made with toys and books, now the messes are much more complex. Have you been in a tweenage girls bathroom lately? Ugh! And those bedrooms....how can they get so messy so fast? It used to take us minutes to pick up toys and books when they were toddlers. We're talking HOURS to clean some monumental messes now. While I'm sure their eyes were perfectly normal when they were 5, now they seem to roll back in their heads when they're asked to work. They think I don't see this strange dysfunction, but oh, I do. And I remember those rolly eyes when they ask ME for something.

And so the battles have begun. The tween vs. the teen. The duo against the parents. I knew it would happen eventually, and it's quite normal, I suppose. The newly found independence, the newly found knowledge...what to do with it all? Drive your parents crazy. That's what I say about all that hoopla. I warn them frequently, "Don't think I don't know what you're doing. I was once young too. I drove my parents crazy, and your dad was a real stinker to his. We can handle you, so just watch out!" And as usual, it's met with their usual response...

Eye roll. Snicker. And the classic retreat up to their rooms to once again conspire against the very life-givers who would give up their lives for them over and over.

Stinkers.