Kids are the Best Medicine

I’ve been journaling for a very long time.  Not that I’m especially old or anything but I received my first diary when I was about ten years old and from that moment on, it has never crossed my mind not to journal. 

Every few years, I find myself reading through some of my old journals.  It is enjoyable to read back through old memories, good times and about family who have passed on.  It helps to see how much I’ve grown and changed through the good times and the bad.  You think so much differently when you are in middle school, in high school and as you work your way through college and enter the work force.  You change even more after you marry, have children and build a career. 

While I enjoy reading through journals as a way to remember what has happened in the past, I especially enjoy reading entries about my boys.  I’ve been writing about them since before they were born.  The struggles during pregnancy, the excitement after their birth and the worries we had as new parents only led to many more journal entries from the boys’ first toothless grins (most likely due to gas) to the achievements they have earned as young men.

The boys have brought me immense happiness as a mother and what I truly adore is that they have also brought humor to our lives.  Life is too serious.  We need to enjoy those around us and see the humor in all things.  Having kids around you pretty much forces you to do just that.  Kids look at life in wonder and with laughter but as adults, we tend to lose that attitude. 

Kids add a necessary element to life to help make you feel young. 

Wave Runners

You may be wondering what has caused me to write about this particular subject.  You would be correct if you guessed I had been reading through some past journal entries.  But not just past journal entries about their childhood; it is actually a compilation of entries I have made over the years whenever the boys said or did something I thought was very humorous.  For any new parents out there, if you do not journal, at least make a point of keeping track of highlights such as funny thoughts or comments or actions your child surprises you with.  On those days when you need a good laugh or reminder about a special memory, these little entries will be just the ticket to lighten your heavy heart and make you remember to take stock in the good times.

Here are some examples of entries I made when my boys were younger that still make me laugh to this day:

From my youngest, who asked with all sincerity:  “Mom, do you think I should clip my four pinky toenails?”

From my oldest to my youngest, “You’re like a broken record…except you do different stuff.”

My youngest is five years younger than his brother and did not quite understand the makings of high school when my oldest was voted to be in the Freshman Court.  Of course, my husband and I were thrilled to hear this news from our son.  When my youngest asked me if his brother was the king, I told him no and was about to say his brother was more like a prince when he asked, “Then what is he?  The joker?” 

And while kids do make you feel young, there are those times when they say something to make you feel just a tad bit older.  Especially when they have a conversation with you like this:

Son:  Mom, did you live in the 90’s?

Me:  Yes
Son:  Were you an adult or a kid?
Me:  An adult
Son:  Was it in black and white?

Oh boy.  You can see how sometimes kids might make you feel old.  He thought the 90’s was so long ago it would have been in black and white!  Even funnier is that kids actually believe people, not just television shows, were in black and white.  My son was only eight at the time so of course I forgave him.

Even if kids say something to make you feel old, it will most likely also make you smile or laugh.  Or maybe it will make another person laugh at your expense.  Regardless of who laughs, kids and their sense of humor are the best medicine.  I hope you get to see the humor in life as often as the children in your own life do.