slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

When you first have children they talk about the challenges of parenting, the struggles of a baby waking in the night, the toddler who won’t stay in their bed, the cost of childcare, injuries from sports...

Having to take off work to pick them up from school when they don’t feel well, helping them with homework, a messy house, the never-ending laundry, the cost to buy school clothes, packing their lunches....

You watch their eyes light up on Christmas morning....and try to soak in the magic of those moments.

You coach them in sports, rushing to practices and ballgames...and tote them all over the country to let them play the game they love...no matter how exhausting or expensive it becomes.

Life is just so busy that you rarely even stop to think what the end of those days look like.

In fact, it’s not really even something you can wrap your mind around.

You go into it thinking that 18-20 years sounds like a long time....

Then suddenly hours turn into days...days into months...and months into years.

That little person that used to crawl up next to you in bed and cuddle up to watch cartoons...suddenly becomes this young adult who hugs you in the hallway as they come and go.

And the chaos and laughter that used to echo throughout your home gets filled with silence and solitude.

You’ve learned how to parent a child who needs you to care for and protect them, but have no clue how the whole “letting go” thing is supposed to work.

So you hold on as tight as you can...wondering how time passed so quickly...feeling guilty that you missed something....

Because even though you had 20 years.., it just somehow doesn’t seem like it was enough.

You ask yourself so many questions...

Did you teach them the right lessons?

Did you read them enough books as a child?

Spend enough time playing with them?

How many school parties did you have to miss?

Do they really know how much you love them?

What could I have done better as a parent?

When it’s time for them to go, it all hits you like a ton of bricks.

And all you can do is pray, hope and trust that God will protect them as they start to make their way into the world alone.

Parenting is by far the most amazing experience of your life, that at times leaves you exhilarated while others leave you heartbroken.

But one thing is certain.....it’s never enough time.

So for all the parents with young children, whose days are spent trying to figure out how to make it through the madness...exhausted day in and day out.

Soak. It. All. In.

Because one day., all those crazy days full of cartoons, snuggles, sleep overs, Christmas morning magic, ballgames, practices and late-night dinners all come to an end.

And you’re left hoping that you did enough right, so that when they spread their wings....

They’ll fly...💕

manning5 Loc: Richmond, VA

Then when you lose one to God it doubles the grief!

RandyBrian Loc: Texas

Amen.
You know, what caught ME totally by surprise (at least with my oldest) was the timing. I expected to lose her when she graduated high school and went off to work, or college, or the military. But no.....along about the age of 14 she started spending all her time with her friends and the youth group at our church. And once she started driving, we hardly saw her except in passing. I freely admit that it was a shock losing her years before I expected. It did not seem fair. It still doesn't.

Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon

Thanks for all you wrote down here.

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

Great parenting stories...enjoy

https://www.rd.com/list/hilarious-parenting-true-stories/

Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon

All good ones. When my grandson Anthony was 5 he had his buddy Walter age 4 over. I had a cassette deck and a box of cassette tapes my oldest girl now age 50 had left behind. My wife decided to go play Bingo and left me in charge. Big mistake. While the boys were playing in Anthonys room and listening to KISS I was watching TV and did not notice that they were being quiet, Anthony came out and asked for a band aid for Walters eyebrow. When I saw him it looked like his eyebrow had been torn off. when I went for the mercurochrome Anthony spoke up and showed me a bottle of nail polish. then I looked at him. The boys had painted their eyebrows with nail polish. As carefully as I could I cleaned the nail polish off with remover and removed their eyebrows in the process. They begged me not to tell anyone but the wife came home and the first thing she said was "What happened to their eyebrows?"

RandyBrian Loc: Texas

That is a GREAT story, Tom! Merry Christmas, and thanks for sharing it.

Coos Bay Tom Loc: coos bay oregon

Merry Christmas to you also Randy I'll be 80 when the last child is raised to be a grownup.

AuntiE Loc: 45th Least Free State

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

All of the above, Dear Lady...and, well worth 'em

Wonttakeitanymore

Thank you for the reminder!

Wonttakeitanymore

Thank God it was a church youth group! This life is Not all there is! She’s in good hands !!

Wonttakeitanymore

And love that can never be replaced or experienced by anything else, except Gods love for us! He’s our daddy!