They are Just so Darn Big!

I really should be in bed but I can't sleep. Instead I will entertain myself musing about the kids and how gosh-darn-big they are getting.

This is a recent photo of my nephew Liam with Alex. Alex just turned 7 and Liam turns 7 in April. It is hard to believe how old these boys are getting.

Rob came downstairs this morning saying he had to let out the elastic liner in Alex's jeans from Old Navy. The elastic that holds up long pants on skinny kids. While Alex has never been skinny he still could always use a little support. Anyway, the pants Rob was referring to were the new, not-yet-used size 8 pair that I had picked up on sale and threw in the back of the closet. Size 8 pants! With his giant head he was already 8/10 in shirts but this...

It isn't surprising that they are growing. Just that it seems to happen over night. I just went through this with Izzy. Less than two months after refitting her closet with size 4 clothes, she jumped to a 5.

These kids are starting to cost me a fortune in clothing. Not once have we ever worn out clothes in this house. I now have a 7 year old boy who is 4 1/2 feet tall, about 70lbs with a little sister coming up on 4 feet and over 40lbs.

Sometimes they still ask me to snuggle with them like I did when they were babies. It is near impossible to do now and always reminds me of that book by Robert Munsch, Love You Forever, where the older mom cradles her growing son. It is hard to believe these are the kids I could once cradle in one arm.

Helicopter Parenting...Gone too Far!

Advice D.H. Lawrence offered back in 1918: "How to begin to educate a child. First rule: leave him alone. Second rule: leave him alone. Third rule: leave him alone. That is the whole beginning."

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1940395-4,00.html#ixzz0Xo8kwWFM

I love this article. It is pretty timely for me. I have been giving Alex more and more freedom. I give him some room, he handles himself admirably, he gets more room. He is more self assured and self sufficient. I couldn't be prouder and I couldn't be happier to see the growing boy coming along.

Yesterday he popped into Little Ceasar's Pizza with $10 to pick up a cheese pizza. All by himself. We stayed in the car, watching him through the window, while he asked for his order and paid. These events are less of a big deal the more they occur. He knows he can handle himself and my fears about what could go wrong are dissipating quickly.

It is hard to let go of the fears that bombard parents these days. When you can step back, though, the freedom is exhilarating.