My baby is headed to middle school

Do you see that dimple on her cheek there? She has had that since she was a baby. I often gazed into her sweet baby face and giant blue eyes and wondered what she would be like when she grew up. I never imagined she would grow up in such an amazing young lady. I was certain we would mess her up somehow. But, here she is, still alive, responsible, smart, kind and wonderful.

When you have a baby, so many people tell you that the time goes so fast. I remember looking at them with bleary eyes with my shirt covered in snot and spit up and thinking, "yeah right". But it does. These eleven years have gone by so fast, but they also have gone so slow. Being a parent has changed me so fundamentally, that it seems weird that there was a time that I wasn't a parent. Was it really just 11 years ago?

I think that it is hard to truly appreciate some things until you become a parent:

- how much you are deeply loved by your parents
- how much work being a parent is it is until you have done it day after day
- that your parents were probably winging it as they went along and learning as they went just like you are now
- how much your heart aches for your child as they go through each pain and hard lesson
- it is hard to be the bad guy even when it is the right thing to do for your child
- letting your child become independent and push away from you as they grow up is the right thing to do, but sometimes it hurts

I am arming myself with preteen parenting books. If we can manage to not ruin her over the next few years, it will be a job well done.