Four Teenagers in the Hoooouse!

Two years ago, I posted here about having three teenagers in our family, and in the blink of an eye, I now have four (for about 8 months, before my eldest turns twenty! Gracious).   My fourth child turned 13 last week, and his older brother turned 15 the month before, giving me a 19, 17, 15, and 13 year old under my roof (oh, and also a sweet little newly-minted 10 year old as well). :)   It seems pretty surreal that I am the mother of four teenagers, especially since I feel like I was one just a few years ago. This sounds like the stuff nightmares are made of (or at least scary books and blog posts).

BUT- so far so good.  The older three have eased me into teenageriness (spell check did NOT flag that word - who knew??) relatively gently, and overall, I’m loving the teen years.

A few of the joys of teenagers below:

• Laughter.  SO. Much. Laughter.  These kids crack me up on the daily.  I am in tears so often.  They’re funny, they’re goofy, they’re basically amateur comedians.  
• They’re helpful.  Well, sometimes.  And if they don’t always exactly offer to help, I know they’re capable of it and I assign them stuff to do. :) 
• Deep conversations.  I love the talks my teenagers and I have.  They have insights I don’t, and they’re really smart kids!  We can talk about faith, politics, academics, television, you name it.  They always wow me with their perspectives.
• Independence.  When I had a little people majority it was hard to imagine going to the bathroom alone, but here we are, in a world where that’s standard now.  I don’t have to cut anyone’s food or give anyone a bath anymore.  And while sometimes I miss those days, it’s also awesome to see them doing so much on their own (like getting jobs, and also cutting their own food.).  
• Watching their personalities really develop into young adults.  Seeing my kids blossom into young adults has been a joy.  They’re pretty great people, and I can see glimpses into what they will become. It’s so exciting to see them grow and stretch.
• Laughter.  Did I mention that?  Being a mom to teenagers is so fun.

My newest teenager is just embarking on all of the above, but already I am experiencing these things with him.  He certainly makes me laugh (the kid is hilarious!), and I am starting to see glimpses of many other aspects I listed above.  He is full of passion and zest for life, and watching him embrace his interests is a joy.  

I won’t have four teenagers for very long, so I’m soaking up these years with them.  I know it isn’t always unicorns and rainbows, but it’s pretty great so far.  And I’m pretty grateful.