Just when I thought I was done

Teenagers are my life.  Yes, I have no life.  Actually, they weren’t for awhile.  I thought I was ‘done’!  My kids were away at school or settled with their respective partners in other cities.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my children but I certainly wasn’t suffering from any of the ‘empty nest syndrome’ you hear some folks struggle with.

In fact, I picked up a few new sports (kayaking, snowboarding, flying trapeze classes – which everyone should do at least once by the way, totally worth it).  My oldest girl-child figured that was my way of dealing with the fact that I missed my kids so much…

One day, youngest step-daughter shows up on the doorstep needing a place to stay, with a friend in tow.  This isn’t the first time she’s tried to live here but she didn’t do well with it last time.  Bleeding heart tree-hugger type I’m not, no matter what anyone might say.  I’m a tough old thing with super high expectations and little tolerance for bullshit.  Things were definitely different this time.  If buddy was going to be staying here, step-daughter was going to be staying with her.

So the two of them stayed.  That was almost a year ago.  So much for being done but it’s okay.  I don’t really mind having teenagers in the house.  (I need to keep telling myself that some days).  Even if we do live in the country and they don’t have their freakin’ drivers licences.  (we’re working on that).  All you taxi parents know exactly what I mean!!

I figured “hey, my kids turned out really well, what’s a couple more?”  yeah, right.  I didn’t account for the fact that they’ve both been through some traumatic stuff and have “issues”.  So here we go again.  It’s been an interesting 11 months.  .