Today my daughter turns 18.
With this birthday she has earned the title of adult, and everything that goes along with it. The good - she is able to vote in this year's pivotal election, and the bad - creepy men now feel they can "legally" be creepy towards her.
Every birthday she has had up to this point has been special, but this one is different. This one is the beginning of the end. The end of childhood, the end of innocence, the end our our family living under one roof. My daughter still has a year of school left before she goes to college, and I'm grateful for that. I will take as much time with her that I can get. But I know this is temporary.
As her childhood ends, my job as a mother has switched from full-time to part-time, and soon it will go to an as-needed basis. I know I will always have this job, but my role gets smaller and smaller every day. It's so strange to think about.
Eighteen years ago this day seemed impossibly far away. As I struggled to adjust to being a new parent, I had no time to fantasize about what today would look like. What my little baby girl would look like. It was a challenge to just get through the day. I remember laying on the couch with my baby asleep on my chest, and being in awe that I had created this tiny human. Now as I look at my daughter all grown up, I'm even more astonished that I had any part of her creation.
Parenthood is not easy and there were many days where time seemed to stand still. Yet, this moment still got here way too fast. A few weeks ago I came across a very fitting quote from Parenting Teens and Tweens:
This is exactly what if feels like! Day to day parenting can feel agonizingly slow, but when you look back, the years seem to fly by. I'm still not sure how my daughter went from infant to baby to toddler to child to tween to teen to adult so quickly!
I look at my daughter today and know it was all worth it - every tear, every worry, every struggle. I feel a sort of accomplishment - not only because we reached this milestone, but because she grew into a wonderful, responsible, intelligent, loving person.
I would love to take credit for that, but much of who and what she is right now is just her nature. Her father and I would often marvel at her ability to take on challenges and failures in a mature way. The only thing we can take credit for as parents is allowing her to be herself and giving her the time and space needed to deal with life.
Like I said, I have less than a year left with my daughter before she goes off into this crazy world. That's a difficult pill to swallow. She is such a big part of my life now and it will take some adjusting to get used to the empty space she will leave behind. At the same time I am excited for her to go out and experience new things.
For now I will cherish the time I have left. The days may be long, but this year will fly by fast. I just hope it's not too fast.
- Amy Young
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