TERRIFIED!

Last week Evan went to the Sweetheart's Dance and he drove other teenagers for the first time. I was a little bit nervous about him playing chauffeur, but he made it home, and so did the other kids, so all was well. Plus, he sure makes for a handsome, polite, and very nice date. Smart girl to ask him to the dance! He came home that night and told us that now he understands why we've been bugging him about dining etiquette: he said he saw someone eat that night the way he usually eats dinner at home, and he never wants to eat that way again. I'm a little afraid to think what that other person looked like at dinner, but I'm grateful to whatever it or who it is that helps my boys be better!

Then came Valentine's Day. Lane asked if I could take him to buy "some Valentine stuff" and I have to admit, that scared me a little, too. I'm thrilled that he wants to do something nice for someone else, and thrilled that he's into girls...but he's just so close in age to when it all gets real and he starts dating and thinking he is king of the world (oh, wait! We're already there!). I was greatly relieved when I found out he wanted to buy "Valentine stuff" for 12 girls, and not just one! That's the kind of 15 year old boy I like, and so do about 12 other girls.

Scariest of all, though, was Joshua. A girl from his school class invited him to her birthday party, which is fine and dandy with me. Apparently, though, this made for more than just normal "yahoo-I-get-to-go-to-a-birthday-party" excitement for Joshua. My first inklings that this girl might matter to Joshua came as we were arguing over a gift for young Maddie. Joshua wanted to take my $10 (the family limit for birthday party gifts) and add another $20 of his own funds to buy her a gift card or a movie and an outfit. Joshua, by the way, never wants to spend his own money! Mean mom that I am, I would not relent. But neither would he, until I finally said that if he bugged me about it again he wouldn't go at all! He stopped bugging, and we went shopping this afternoon for the gift. I was looking at cute hair bands and lip gloss and such (the girl is 9) when Joshua said, "Mom, you don't understand. Maddie is not that kind of girl. She's much more mature than that kind of stuff." Uh, oh. My fear-factor continued to rise when Joshua wanted to hurry home from the store so that he could take a shower before the party! I didn't feel much better when he came upstairs wearing cologne and deodorant and was working for the perfect hair flip in the bathroom!

He changed his outfit twice before we left, and was deep breathing in the back of the van in order to calm himself as we drove to the party! For all his nervousness, he came home tonight energized, exultant, exuberant, and full of stories from the evening! He came home happy, and I just became terrified!