Toddler to Teen

I was walking in the parking lot the other day with my oldest and youngest child. There are 14 years separating them. One is six foot four and over 200 pounds. The other is 3 feet shorter and 160 pounds lighter. It's interesting having children at such different stages of life. It made me think about the differences between having young kids and teenagers. Of course, I still have both, but here's a few observations.

• Less Spongebob, more Survivor.
• 8 o'clock bedtime extends to 10.
• Bottles and sippy cups are replaced by soda and Powerade.
• "Can I go out and play." changes to "I'm going on Facebook."
• "What do you want to be when you grow up?" is no longer a fun question, but a serious consideration.
• Fighting to keep them quiet during church evolves into watching in awe as they so reverently pass and bless sacrament.
• I can no longer buy them clothes then bring them home. The clothes will either (a) not fit; or (b) be unstylish. Or both. More often it's b- I'm not nearly as cool as I think I am.
• Toddler tantrums make way for teenage attitude. (Not sure which is worse.)
• "Shotgun!" is replaced by, "Can I drive?" (I doubt I'll ever drive to church again.)

Now, I know I complain about my teenagers alot, but seriously, I do enjoy this new chapter in our lives. I love talking to them about grown-up stuff and seeing their sense of humor. I have three teenagers and sometimes they don't get along, ok, alot of the time. But, every now and then, I get these moments. Like last night, the three of them were in the kitchen together. Talking, laughing and joking. It made me smile. Then, one of them screamed like a girl, and it wasn't the girl. Oh, well. I'll cling to the moments, no matter how fleeting.

Tell me the differences you've noticed as your kids have grown.