Sunday, October 5, 2014

Middle Aged Mom Moments

I am finally here, where my own mom was 25 years ago. Middle Age. It's not a terrible place to be, and I'm not sure it's even the best, as my life is not over yet, but I can tell you that it is a good place to be.
I am the mom of three teenage daughters. One by adoptions (at age 3 days), one by birth, and one came to us via foster parenting (she doesn't call me mom, but technically I am playing that role right now).
So I accidentally published this on my tablet and didn't finish it. I started this with the idea that I would think of some good middle age mom moments to share. Being the mom of teenagers is an ungrateful job. While I have good kids, the demands on my time and energy often leave me feeling exhausted and downright grouchy.
I wish that instead of asking me for money or clothes or wht is there to eat, they would ask me if they can put the dishes away or do the laundry. I sometimes wonder if I had died of my cancer last year what my house would look like. I am sure the neighbors would be calling the health department to check on my family, and we don't even have pets!
My husband is a great man nevertheless. He is alone in the house with 4 females. I wouldn' t think one less would make much of a difference. I think he secretly spends part of his day planning escape routes from us. He takes on the Driver's Ed duties. That is probably enough to put someone in an insane asylum all by itself. Overall he helps keep me sane because he DOES help with dishes and laundry.
We do teach the girls responsibility. They have chores on weeks off of school and they have to take turns mowing the lawn. They also work hard in school, are kind to others, and listen to clean music. As a mom I value these qualities much more than picking up around the house. If I had to choose one thing to spend my parenting energy on it would definitely be character building over cleaning.
That is my middle aged mom moment for the day!