Last summer was one of the most physically and emotionally exhausting summers of my life.
It was grueling, actually.
I could list all the reasons why, but those details don’t really matter, because I don’t need to justify what’s grueling to me. I don’t need to prove to anyone why it was hard.
It was just really fucking hard.
What actually matters is that I recognized it was unmanageable, and I made a note not to repeat that again this year.
One of the most challenging aspects of the schedule last summer was adding a teenager who had a job (but couldn’t drive) into the mix.
There was so much driving last summer.
SO MUCH DRIVING.
Kristofer, my oldest, turned 16 last summer, and we both knew that getting him his driver’s license would help both of us out tremendously.
And so we made that a priority.
We both worked hard to get him his license.
Getting your license is not the same as it was 35 years ago when I got my license. I never took driver’s ed and I never even got a permit.
My parents taught me how to drive, and then less than a month after I turned 16 I took the written and driving test on the same day, passed both test, and got my license.
I was driving myself to morning swim practice the next day and driving my friends and brothers around the next weekend.
It doesn’t work that way anymore.
In Connecticut now you have to get a permit before you get your license. You get your permit by taking (and passing) the written portion of the test.
Once you pass the written portion of the test, you must take at least 8 hours of driver’s ed.
If you take 8 hours of driver’s ed you can take the driving test six months after you get your permit.
If you take the 30-hour driver’s ed course, you can take the driver’s test 4 months after you get your permit.
We opted for the 30 hour driver’s ed course.
Less than six months after Kristofer turned 16, he had his license.
Once you have your license, you have to wait 6 months to drive with siblings in the car and a full year to drive with friends.
Kristofer is now legally allowed to drive his brother and sisters anywhere.
Getting him his license has been a game changer for both of us.
He’s got freedom and independence, and it’s one less person for me to get anywhere.
Plus, he really is helping me out with getting the other kids to camp.
This summer has been so much more manageable (and enjoyable) now that he has his license.
I mentioned him driving the kids to camp in the mornings on the NYAM Facebook page, and someone left a comment asking if it was hard to see him drive away with all the kids. If my heart broke a little bit.
My answer?
HECK NO.
Sure, it’s hard to see the kids grow up and I cannot believe my firstborn is now driving.
And sometimes I get a little misty-eyed when I see a mom with little kids at the grocery store because it really does change SO QUICKLY.
I remember the days of the kids wanting to ride in the “car” shopping cart at the grocery store and now we are driving for real.
I can’t believe we are at this stage of life already.
Yeah, change is hard.
Ten years ago I felt differently about arriving at this season of parenting.
I didn’t want it to arrive.
I wanted the kids to stay little forever.
But just like we learned from watching Elmo Saves Christmas ten thousand times when the kids were little, what makes anything special is the fact that it doesn’t last forever.
Yeah, I miss when the kids were little.
But someday down the road I’ll be a grandmother.
And then I’ll get a chance to revisit this season again, but with a lot more experience under my belt.
And that’s something I’m really looking forward to.
My heart isn’t breaking.
Because it knows there’s some cool shit on the horizon.
And if I spend too much time feeling sad and focusing on the times that are behind me, I’ll miss out on all the ones that are available to me right now.
If you can’t do a push-up, CLICK HERE and let’s change that.
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