I’ve noticed two types of parents at Prince of Peace Preschool…there are the parents who currently have their first-born children enrolled there, and then there’s the “BTDT” parents. Laurie and I, with two older sons, fall into the “Been There, Done That” category. Now that’s not to say we lack the same enjoyment and enthusiasm as those first-timers, we just have a sort of grizzled, wrinkled, seasoned look to our joy. Laurie’s not going to like hearing she has a “wrinkled” look, but there’s no denying it. We aren’t saving every single art project like we used to (especially the ones with insect-attracting food glued to them); and at special events, like Donuts for Dad, we aren’t snapping photos of every donut bite.
Perhaps we’re jaded. Or perhaps, because of our older children, we’re more focused on the big picture of child-raising. We have a better appreciation of where this is all going.
Raising a few kids in one household is not unlike tracking stocks in the stock market. Some days see strong gains, some days see minor setbacks. Some stocks go up, while others go down. Kids bringing home their report card is equivalent to companies reporting their quarterly earnings. While we’ve had many times when all 3 stocks are flying high, we’ve fortunately yet to experience a time when all 3 are dropping . I believe technically that would lead to "Depression". Recently our two older son’s stock prices took a turn for the worse. For a one week stretch, they both seemed to enter the Age of Deception. They couldn’t stay out of trouble. Suddenly they both learned popular kid tricks like “mis-remembering” and “mis-leading”. Their stock prices tumbled that week. And Christopher, ever the opportunist, seized the moment to strengthen his market value. He became the most agreeable kid in the house…eager to brush his teeth and go to bed on time. He even promised to wear his retainer, which technically isn’t his retainer, it’s Adam’s! He also helped us lecture Alex and Adam if needed. Anything to help poor Mom and Dad during the Bear Market. Christopher’s stock soared that week, like Google after strong earnings, or Starbucks during the Clinton administration.
Christopher was enjoying the good run so much he devised a clever new tactic to avoid trouble. One day when Laurie was having a tough time convincing Christopher he needed to get dressed for school, Christopher pulled out his toy cell phone (unlimited minutes) and
placed an imaginary call to Grandma in Buffalo, NY. He conducted a complete imaginary phone conversation with her, even pausing for imaginary listening when Grandma spoke. He said goodbye to her, hung up the phone and reported that she didn’t think he needed to
get dressed after all. Most disturbing, he told us she used a “bad word”. After some prodding he told us the bad word was “stupid”. I’m not sure in what context Grandma used the imaginary “bad word” (hopefully not referring to her son-in-law), but after creative incidents like this I have a pretty good grasp on why Laurie and I may have a grizzled, seasoned look to our joy.
The only advice I have for those first-time parents, don’t get too excited about those one-day stock surges, and don’t get too disappointed with the one-day dramatic drops…the goal is always steady, upward growth over the long haul. That’s the kind of portfolio every family should strive for.
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