Please stay young...

I knew eventually that my kids would get older and not need me for every little task. I knew that, but it's still not easy to accept.
I also knew that they'd make a ton of friends and some that I wouldn't consider friends. I always said that I wouldn't pick their friends, but at this stage, I find myself slowly weeding out the not so good friends. I still let them come over and hang out, but it's in small increments and under supervision...tight supervision.
I knew that with age comes attitude, trust me I was all about attitude when I was a pre-teen. It's something you just cannot control and it's usually geared towards the mother. Yep, we are there. I get the sass, the rolling of the eyes, the "how you kidding me" stare, I get it all. But then 10 minutes later, she wants to snuggle and laugh. Ahhh, the joys of being a girl.
I knew that my kids would get many boo-boos, ouchies, scrapies, etc. I grew up with 2 brothers, I knew we'd go through band-aids like crazy. I just forgot about the part about being the one that needs to clean said boo-boos. When the bike you are riding at Mach 3, decides to just fall from underneath you and you go skidding down the sidewalk, it's up to Mom to clean up the road rash that covers a good portion of his leg. It's tough to keep cleaning as he's writing in pain and screaming at the top of his lungs.
I knew that there would be sleepovers and things happening at sleepovers. I forgot about the updates that follow from parents. It's nothing horrendous, just eye opening.
I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep them busy with chalk, a bucket of water and a paint brush forever, but I was hoping for a few more years of the laid back activities. Enter sports camps, art camps, baseball, cheer, etc. I love seeing them active and in fun activities, and I'm thankful Jason's job allows them the chance to do these activities. It just seems like we spend so much time running from place to place, but it's what my kids find enjoyable now...so we run.
I love my kids to the moon and back, but I want them to stay little longer. Time needs to slow down so I can keep them under my wing and protect them for everything. I'm not ready to let them fly and leave my nest. I'm not babysitting at all this summer (first time in about 7 years) so it's a summer for me to enjoy every moment with my kids and make tons of fabulous memories and keep them tucked under my wing, just a tiny bit longer.