My Twice Baked Potato

My TBP is just months away from being ten years old. It doesn’t seem possible.

I really like this stage that we’re in right now. He’s old enough to have long conversations about his interests and he’s becoming more capable and responsible.

So far, maturity has been our friend. This was clearly evident over the weekend.

Friday night, we typically have Family Movie Night. We watch a movie and eat our dinners on vintage TV trays in the living room. This has been a consistent tradition and my son doesn’t remember it any other way. Changing this weekly date is usually a problem so I was unsure that we could accept an invitation to meet friends out to dinner; however, we really wanted to see our friends that live hours away.

My TBP took the news well and was open to switching our plans. Check one for maturity and an increase in flexible thinking.

As we sat in the restaurant, it got busier and louder. Even I noticed the need to speak up during conversations.  My son was able to sit there for a couple of hours (with one break to walk outside and look at the ducks by the water) while we visited with our friends.

Check another box for patience, stamina and perseverance despite sensory sensitivities.

The next morning, we packed up the car and headed out for a quick getaway. Due to limited space, we were traveling to the mountains without many of his comforts…mainly his computer. Surprisingly, we only heard a few mentions about the computer and slow internet.

There were only a couple of times where he asked, “Are we there yet?” and he didn’t argue when I told him to read in the car. He helped carry things into the condominium and willingly constructed a bat house and found out where he could hang it on the property.

Check another box for patience and participating in new activities.

The real proof for me was when he didn’t complain when we took a twenty-minute detour on the way home to look at the blooming tulip fields that are an annual tourist attraction.

It was cold, windy & crowded and he posed for pictures (and smiled) despite  wanting to be back home.

I’ve heard that the teen years are hard, especially for kids like mine, but so far I like the changes that have been coming with maturity.