Becoming a parent is the toughest thing anyone can ever do in life. There is no instruction manual. If you have more than one, they don't turn out the same, so you can't even use the lessons learned on child number 1 and have them work on child number 2. And God help you if you decide to have that third child, because then they outnumber you and you're in trouble for the rest of your life. I'm kidding about that last part, mainly because I don't want to scar my youngest for life.
I've received a lot of birthday wishes from friends of mine on Facebook today. Thank you all very much for taking the time out of your day to wish me a happy birthday. I am truly overwhelmed. My present seems to be on permanent back order, so I guess I'll just have to be patient and hope it arrives soon. But that's OK, because in reality, I received the best present many years ago.
Next time it's your birthday, if your parents are still around, call them up and thank them for bringing you into the world. It's the greatest gift you'll probably ever receive until you give that same gift to someone else.
It's my birthday. Thanks Mom and Dad. I love you and I especially love my birthday present.
A great blog, and one which we can certainly appreciate, being parents of three, as well. Of course, we have three girls, all grown up and on their own, so our parenting challenges were different than yours (actually, they are always different for everyone), but that "out-numbered" comment sure struck home!
ReplyDeleteAnd they can still be a hassle at times; they are all grown-up and on their own, although sometimes you wouldn't know it ;-) But through all the trials and tribulations, we just kept plugging along, and they turned out well. Lots of things I'd do differently, but that's true of almost anything. We love them and they love us, and most importantly, they love each other. None of the animosity that siblings often have as adults, which is not to say that they don't annoy each other, sometimes.
My parents are still alive, and I am thankful for that, every day. I also have let them know, often, that I am thankful that they had me and my sister. They certainly made plenty of mistakes, but those helped us with our own girls, so it's all good.
Lastly, I completely forgot about your birthday, so let me wish you a "Belated Happy Birthday!" here :-) Hope you had a nice day, and I hope that your students we a little less rambunctious than usual.