It's Neat to be a Grown-up Sometimes

Very rarely do I experience moments where I legitimately feel like a grown-up (and I think the fact that I say "grown-up" instead of "adult" is good proof of that). I had fun as a kid. I got into huge amounts of trouble as a teenager and enjoyed every minute of it. I enjoy childish humor and laugh like a 13 year-old if someone farts. I hate the idea of giving all that up. Tonight is one of those rare occasions where something happens that makes me say, "oh shit, that's something a grown-up does!". It isn't the big things that make me feel this way either. A husband, 2 kids, a full time job, and a mortgage payment don't make me feel grown up. Bills and meetings and cocktails with my girlfriends don't do it either. What it boils down to as I lie awake in my bed watching the lightening flash and the trees sway back and forth without hiding under the covers, is that my most grown up feelings come when I find myself doing things I remember my parents doing when I was a kid. My parents were never afraid of thunder storms, but I sure was. And when Bug wanders into my room tonight because he is scared I'm going to let him stay, because as a grown-up, I've been there. I've been too scared to sleep alone. Earlier tonight we did a little shopping to look for a new dryer because ours sounds like it has 3000 rocks in it (and buying major appliances is definitely something only grown-ups do). On our way home both boys fell asleep. Something about carefully sneaking a sleeping child out of his car seat, carrying him quietly to his bed, and gently tucking him in makes me feel grown-up. No, it makes me feel like an adult. And at that moment, being an adult is pretty damn awesome.