Pretending to be Grown Up

What makes you feel grown up? I know I have children. My oldest is quickly catching up to me in height (granted, not hard to do) and she will be in Young Women's this year. So I should feel like I am the adult.

And yet...

Sometimes I just feel like a kid with kids. I still want to roll down the windows and turn my music up really loud. I want to sleep in and have someone else take over. Perhaps growing up simply means that you accept the responsibility that you may not want. I mean, who really wants to support a whole family and pay taxes.

I shouldn't gripe. Some days I DO want to clean the house and be in charge. Just not every day. And making dinner every evening DOES mean that I get to chose my favorite things to eat. (Trust me, the kids are not always happy with my culinary selections.)

I am just surprised how little I have changed, while still changing in gargantuan measures. (Is this making sense to anyone else?) Do my parents feel like big children? When my children grow up, will I feel they have caught up to me? This thought process is pretty exhausting. It is a good thing that life has slowed down enough that I can take the occasional cat nap. In fact, my 'baby' brought blankets and such to cover me and keep me cozy. You might also check out that the new couches on which I am slumbering.

We finally have furniture in 'Carnegie Hall.' Ivory was crushed that we took away her gymnastics run-way, but we gave her the downstairs (dubbed 'Atlantis') now that the Houck's are vacated, and she was appeased.

I know it is February, but I feel like time has been slowing down in a way. I haven't been taking pictures and that gives the false impression that nothing is happening and therefore nothing blog worthy has been missed. I checked my phone and the last picture I took was on Tyler's birthday. See? Where is my head at?

On my regular camera, I have taken a few more. I made cookies the other day after Ivory had a small emotional episode because I wouldn't buy her stale cookies at Barnes and Noble that were 50% off. (They didn't even look good. They were just shaped like elves. Does that tell how old they probably were?) I told Ivory I would make her fresh cookies. And I did. Pearl is evidence as she licks the spoon.

We went skating the other evening, but I didn't take pictures. Since Daisy's goal is to learn to skate by herself, we all packed up and I forked out the cash for the whole troop to go. (I conveniently chose dollar skate night.) Robyn is quite assured on her blades. June...is working on it. Ivory and Daisy are both trying to keep their feet under them. And Pearl was digging the scooter. She was a pro, scooting around the rink, although her paranoid mother made her stay close to the edge.

I love all the space in our new home. It seems there is room for everyone to spread out and not be pushing on someone else's bubble. But they still enjoy playing together and making up new games. (I miss using my imagination like that. Maybe that is a sign of growing up...not being able to do imaginative play as easily.) Here the girls made up a game using the glass table. Robyn was pointing out cards from underneath. It actually looks relaxing.

That's all for now. A week until Valentine's Day. Are you ready? I guess it really depends on how or whether you celebrate. As for me, I am getting ready to put together another 120 or so Valentine's. Good thing my slave labor comes cheap around here.