On Being a Grown-Up

I always get the thoughtful–sometimes challenging–questions from my kids while driving. Typically it’s when we have a long drive or a lot of traffic, which means I can’t escape the ones I am not quite prepared to answer. Asking me how babies come out of a mommy’s body while driving on the highway many years ago is one that comes to mind (My response: “That’s a great question to ask daddy at dinner tonight!”).

Monkey, my youngest, is the one who most often likes to spend drive time having discussions on everything from childbirth to our favorite letter of the alphabet. Recently he posed this question:

“Mom, is it fun being a grown-up?”

What quickly became clear in our discussion was my son’s concern about life as an adult being terrible because adults have to work and pay for everything. It surprised me because Monkey’s two dads and I are all deeply passionate about what we do professionally, and love our work. Additionally, the kids see how great it is that I own my own company, allowing me the flexibility to never miss a baseball game, see the kids off to school daily, and not work their school holidays.

What I realized in digging deeper into the discussion is that hating a job and complaining about bills is so prevalent in society that our kids are attuned to this. Quitting a job is at the top of the list of what people would do if they hit the lottery, for example. Too often aspects of life are described as a grind rather than a fun adventure.

In speaking with someone this morning, we were discussing the details of his weekend and mine. After hearing I had a date with my husband, a relaxing Saturday, enjoyed football, and worked a ½ day Sunday, he focused on the latter part of my weekend: working. “Oh, that’s too bad,” he stated sympathetically. I found myself in a position not unfamiliar to me: explaining that I love my work.

Have I always been excited to rise each morning to start a new day?

No, of course not.

What we each have as adults is the freedom to make choices. We can better our lives through making changes in relationships (romantic or platonic), careers, financial situations, and many more aspects of life. We all have the ability to make being a grown-up fun.

Along with these abilities to make big life choices for myself as an adult, here are just a few more grown-up benefits I enjoy:

• No one tells me when it’s “lights out” time.
• Making my bed is optional.
• Completing geometry proofs is never required.
• Jumping in puddles in the rain doesn’t involve a scolding.
• I only make vegetables I like to eat.

What about you?

Why do you like being a grown-up?

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