Growing up is hard to do...

A recent conversation between my two youngest boys and I had me both laughing and crying. It started with our 9 year old having a consult with an orthodontist. They think he may need to start ortho in 6 months or so. As we are leaving I must have looked a little down, and our 9 year old says "Well at least they are giving you 6 months to get used to the fact that I am growing up!". I don't think I'd actually come to the point of thinking about that  YET, (I would have, he just helped it along) I was more looking at the estimate for the cost of this ortho stuff and thinking "really?". It started this whole conversation of how I am so proud of all of my kids, but I hate how fast they are growing up. So Mr. Carson has to continue with "yeah, and soon Chase and Kohl will be away at school" which of course opens up new questions. Will they ever live at home again? We won't get to be with them on their birthdays? Can we move to where they are? Do we all go to the same college? It really was ending up to be quite a sad conversation, but funny the way the minds of children work. So Kaden then at some point realizes this means somewhere down the road he will be the only one home with Bob and I. After a minute of him seeming a little sad about that he decides it might be kind of fun! Whew....thought maybe I wasn't going to be cool enough! Mr. Carson then continues to add "and by the time you are 16 Kaden you could be an uncle"! Ok, so now they have me laughing at the fact that they even think about that kind of stuff and if you do the math it really is possible! Crying at the fact, I can hardly deal with our oldest leaving for college and they already have me being a Grandma! I am NOT ready for any of this. Not braces, not college and definitely not Grand parenthood! Growing up is hard to do...for me!
Thank you God for blessing me immensely.

I remember years ago,
you were so little then.
Sometimes,
I can't help but wish,
that you were small again.
I've cried when you've faced heartaches,
and saw, that as you grew,
nothing broke your Spirit,
instead it strengthened you.
I'm filled with mixed emotion,
as I hold back all the tears
and, with much pride remember,
back so many years.
When I first held you in my arms,
if only I'd have known,
the years would feel like moments,
after you had grown.
You aren't a baby
though in my eyes,
I guess you'll always be,
that baby boy who changed my life,
and means the world to me.

-Cynthia A. Sieving