Have any of y’all gone through “those days” in parenthood?

You know the days I mean.

The house is a mess, the dog is barking, the food is bubbling over on the stove, and the kids look like this?

Maybe you sit down and cry. Maybe you laugh about it and stop long enough to capture the moment with a picture, but there is still the mess to clean. Some days, with all the noise and commotion, all you can think is, “Calgon, take me away!”

All of you Mommy Bloggers out there need to know this:

The cute little toddler you see today will be a grownup before you can blink! You will look at their mature face and wonder where the years went. On the days that you are too tired to parent, and want to just be left alone, stop.

Think!

One day, they will grow up and move on!

That baby in the picture is Ian. He turns a quarter of a century old today! He can eat a whole meal now without getting food all over his face! Usually.

My oldest stepson is a “pistol.” That’s what my Daddy would have called him, anyway. That would mean he is quite a character, and great fun to be around. I didn’t get the pleasure of knowing Ian in his early years; when I met him, he was almost grown. I was immediately drawn to him because his sense of humor is not at all unlike his father’s. That would mean that they are both masters of pun and dry wit.

Ian has had a fascination since childhood with video games and all things Star Wars related. Halloween last year was right up his alley. Unfortunately, he is off living in Portland, Oregon, so we don’t always get pictures in a timely manner (hint, hint). We recently received these from his Halloween celebration. Ian and his beloved, Angela, dressed as Han Solo and Princess Leia from Star Wars.

Now, we knew that they had these outfits when they visited us last fall. Angela told me that Ian was all jazzed about his costume, and secretly dressed in it when she wasn’t around. She said she could hear the excitement in his voice when she called him.

“You’re wearing that costume… aren’t you?” she asked.

“Well, ummm…yes,” he mumbled. She said she could catch him every time.

Last Halloween, they dressed as Clark Kent and Lois Lane.

From the looks of it, Angela enjoys this just as much as Ian does. It’s a good thing they found each other!

Ian, here are your Daddy’s birthday wishes:

Son,

One of the things I’ve always loved about you is the joy you get from playing in the way these pictures show! And I’m proud of you beyond words that you have grown into a fine, loving, caring, and responsible young man. I wish you continuing joy and happiness as you move into the quarter-centuries that follow!

All my love–

Dad

Happy birthday, son. You are a joy to be around, and I wish that Portland, Oregon was not so far away!

Better yet, I wish that I would win the Texas lottery and could come visit you all the time. Wouldn’t that be fun?

Stop rolling your eyes like that!