May You Stay Forever Young. Please.

Sometimes I wish Bill had stayed
about this age...

This weekend, Bill has his first sleepover at another kid’s house. It’s great, but it’s also sad. How can he grow up like this? Doesn’t he know that he needs to stay a baby? or at least a toddler? Not that I don’t love this developmental stage completely, but I am just not ready to have a kid that is old enough for a sleepover.

...or maybe this age.

What’s next? I’d say girlfriends, but it’s too late for that... Bill has had girlfriends since he was, maybe... two years old. First he was going to “marry” a cute little girl in his preschool class named Avery. The next year, his obsession was a redhead named Caroline, also in his preschool. Kindergarten meant a whole new group of kids, and, well, I’m not going to tell you who he’s into, because it’s still the same gal... third year in a row!

He’s also already told me multiple times that I was “embarrassing” him. You know what he really hates? When I sing in public. That’s why I do it. Plus, I just love singing... and I know a lot of good songs.

My super cool, awesome
teen niece.

I shudder to think what the teen years will bring... I see teen boys sauntering around looking all awkward and surly... and I can’t help but pray for God to protect us all through the bipolar nature of these turbulent years. We’ll need protection from each other, I think... Us from his mood swings, him from our incompetence as parents. It doesn’t bode well that I may well be smack dab in the middle of menopause at the same time! 

The Bible, my usual go-to book for advice says simply: Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. So... what does it mean to "embitter" your children? And how do I avoid this if I don't know what it means? Do you think embittered means "surly"?

My sister and her super cool, awesome teens.

Maybe we’ll get lucky and he’ll turn out to be cool and fun and non-surly like my nieces and nephews. Let’s hope. Until then, I can take comfort in the thought that Bill wouldn’t think of going to a sleepover if he couldn’t take along his skanky Mickey Mouse pillow (really, it's skanky – it's had all manner of stuff spilled on it/ground into it) and blue blanket.