I find myself asking the same question to myself often. “How am old enough to…?” I don’t feel old. (Plus, I subscribe to Sheryl Sandberg’s philosophy of “If we grow old, we are lucky.”)
I mean, my youngest is in Kindergarten! (Never mind the fact that Marc and I are probably the oldest parents in the class.) However, with my older child’s Bat Mitzvah rapidly approaching, I find myself shocked by how quickly the years are moving.
However, I’m starting to think about what I want to do for my 50th birthday, which is less than five years away, so I suppose I am old enough to ______. (Fill that blank in with whatever you wish.)
Isabelle turned 12 earlier this month. I haven’t driven her around much since I’ve been sick for most of this month. After going for much needed haircuts over the weekend, I asked her, “Would you like to ride in the front passenger seat?”
“Yes!” she replied.
“No tuning the radio when I’m driving or else I pull the car over so you can return to your regular seat.”
“Okay,” she agreed. “But can I listen to KidzBop?”
“Yes, but I don’t want you to change the volume while I’m driving. Reaching over the console is distracting to me. Do we have a deal?”
She nodded.
As I pulled out of the parking spot, I looked both ways before I turned onto the street. When I looked to the right, I noticed Isabelle sitting beside me and wondered, “How am I old enough to have a kid who can sit in the front seat?”
Raising Literate Humans 
I ask myself this question all the time!! Of course, my youngest is now sitting next to me in the front, and our oldest has been spending a fair share of time in the driver’s seat! I never really listened to the people who warned me about it all going so quickly…now, I’m those people. Enjoy every minute that you can!
Yes, I want to be that lady now. Maybe not the enjoy-every-minute-of-it lady since no one enjoys stomach viruses and RSV, but that it-really-does-go-fast lady. I think I have enough silver streaks and wisdom lines to be taken seriously in that role. 😉
It all happens in a flash!
The time does fly by! My oldest turns 30 this year, but I still remember the milestone of moving to the front seat. And then over to the driver’s seat! I love that you’ll have all these moments captured in your writing, (something I did far too little of when my children were young). Treasures.
OMG, I cannot even bear to think about the driver’s seat yet!
You captured a subtle ,often missed, example of coming of age. Where one sits in a car shows so much. Keep enjoying every age, both your own and your kids!
You’re right, Sally! I recall the day we went from baby carrier to rear-facing car seat to forward-facing car seat to booster seat for Ari. Those transitions have been important milestones!
Right?! Time flies and I still find myself wondering how I am old enough to… My “baby” is 29 and his big brother is 31 and I am about to turn 60- it is shocking! Better than the alternative. I also wish I had more of those milestones down in words.
I know this question well, except for
e it’s often framed, “How did I get this old so fast”! Life really does fly by in a flash.
Time flies so quickly! At least you are writing throughout your children’s growing up years and will have all of these lovely stories to remember them. 🙂
I hope they appreciate them and aren’t mortified by this blog when they get older. Time will tell…
I liked reading your pondering about age. I can relate. I am surprised that my youngest turned 18 already. The passport age and the heart age sometimes simply do not match. And the mirrors play tricks too.
I remember when your youngest was a small child in your writing. How is she 18!?! As someone looking in from the outside, that went quickly!