There are events in every child’s life that parents look forward to with great relish. Sleeping through the night is a huge one. So is potty training. Life just gets SO MUCH easier when those times come, and everyone knows it and looks forward to it.
There are a couple more that took me by surprise, meaning I didn’t realize how much easier life would be when they came.
One is buckling themselves into the car. We can say to both our kids now "We’re going out, get ready" and they can get dressed, get shoes on, go out to the garage, get into the car, and get buckled into their car seats, all by themselves. How much simpler than before! Sophi even surprised me on her birthday by doing that in the Bronco, which is MUCH taller than the car. But she told me it’s because she’s a bigger girl now that she’s 5.
Another is reading. Sophi doesn’t read yet, but Molly reads quite well now, and I didn’t realize how nice it would be to have a child that can read. She can read menus and decide what she wants for herself. She can read to Sophi and they spend hours together over books, nice and quiet. It’s been really great.
Anyone know of any other unexpected milestones?
How about, wipe and blow their own nose? Give themselves a bath, wash their own hands…oooh how about the day they say, “I’m tired. I’m going to bed now!”
Oh yeah, showering is right up for me. Love that! and putting their laundry away.
The only “unexpected” one (which necessarily excludes sleeping through the night) I’ve experienced so far with our 10-month-old is holding his own bottle. Now, I realize that sounds inconsequential, but sometimes the awkward angles at which you have to hold a bottle for sometimes extended periods of time can make your arm kind of sore — now, that little inconvenience is no more.
Moving out
Working an Xbox controller successfully.
Oh I can think of a few milestones that I’m waiting for:
1. Learn to operate the lawn mower.
2. Make coffee and bring me some in bed.
3. Contribute substantially to the household income.
Driving themselves to practice, church outings, and myriads of extra-curricular stuffs!
I’d vote for the day they take their own medicine without having to be pinned down to the floor or have it disguised in some sugary beverage – not that we have that going on at our house.
The day your daughter helps you take down The Death Star in Lego Star Wars, that was a milestone for me if anything