My 13 year old baby is growing up!

Last Saturday, I took DD1 to her first boy/girl party. She's 13, and the party was for 3 girls from school that were turning 13. It was at the FOP Lodge. I didn't really think too much about the fact that she'd be going to this party with the exception that she needed to get birthday presents for 2 of the 3 girls as she is friends with them. I guess I also thought about how she might primp for the party, trying to decide what to wear and how to fix her hair, but really beyond that I didn't think too much about it.

So she and I set out for the party using Google maps as our guide. Turns out that Google maps failed us, and we had to wing it to get there. DD1 mentioned while we were lost that the FOP Lodge was by Morris Resevoir, so we used that info and the street to get us there. But we were a tad bit late, about 10 minutes. I was totally stressed thinking that DD1 was going to be kill me for getting her there late. She on the other hand was quite calm and pretty understanding about the whole thing.

We got there, got out of the van, and walked up to the building. One of the mothers was there, so I asked her about chaperones, and the time I needed to be back to pick up DD1. No problem. DD1 said a quick good bye and joined her girlfriends that were hanging around outside. No big deal.

Well, after I got back in the van and started driving home I got this funny feeling in the pit of my stomach. Sort of the dread feeling, like I was going to cry. I figured out that I was sad. I just dropped my baby off at her first boy/girl party! She's growing up too fast! I can't stand it. Next thing you know she'll have a boyfriend and want to date. Then she'll be driving. I'm not ready!!! I cried!

I called my sister, and she laughed at me. She said pretty much what I'd been thinking, that is that this is only the beginning! It's the beginning of letting go of my baby girl. The baby girl that I worked so hard to bring into this world with all the fertility treatments I went through, all the longing and praying that I did to have her in my life. I truly feel privledged that God has given me the job title of Mother to raise the girls I've been blessed with. It's all going so fast!