Changing of Colors

Fall.  The air gets dry and the leaves start to change colors.  It can be bittersweet because the colors can be beautiful, but I know it won't be long before the leaves totally dry up and fall off the trees.

Most of my kids are grown.  I have two beautiful daughters and a son in college.  Only one son is still at home full time.  Watching my oldest daughter enjoy her career almost makes me jealous sometimes.  And, watching how good the other daughter is as a young mom makes me wish I could go back and do some things over again.  My son in college is so book smart it's crazy, and yet he has so much learning yet to do!  I'm so thankful for the couple of years I still have left with my youngest at home.

It's so hard to know where to draw the line with my older three between friendship and still being their parent.  It seems the older they get the more we hang out and are like friends than we are like parent/child.  Maybe that's why it might be easier for them to make a comment or say something that they would have never said to me when they were living at home and were younger.  Maybe that's why it makes it seem more disrespectful or hurtful to me when they say some of the things they do.  

It also makes it hard to know how and what punishments to dole out when the ones we are still supporting don't follow the rules.  It would be so easy to act like we have the perfect kids, but although some Facebook posts may seem like that's the case, don't believe it.  When they are so good most of the time but make stupid mistakes, what to do??  

It's a bittersweet time, not only because my kids are becoming adults and leaving our home, but also because having young adults brings many difficult situations and decisions.  Terrible twos, terrible tens, terrible twenties, terrible thirties, etc...  I think once you become a parent, no matter what Season of Life you may be in, you are always the parent and will always have the worry, hurt, discouragement, happiness, praise, and every other feeling you could imagine until life renews itself.  It never get easier. It never goes without hurting.  But when things are good, there is nothing better than the love your kids can give.