BRIDGEWATER, NJ--(Marketwire - May 6, 2010) - A few weeks ago, I came to the harsh realization that my daughters are growing up. While on some level I understand that this has to happen eventually, I would prefer that eventually was much farther in the future!
Several weeks ago, I was folding laundry, which is no small task in our household. You see, I live with my wife and four daughters, -- ages 10, 13, 13 and 13, in our Garden of Estrogen (www.donstaffin.com). So I've grown accustomed to the mishmash of my clothes together with those of five females. However, I feel like 80% of the garments should still be adorned with Disney characters.
Then I came across a pair of eye-catching bikini underwear and a matching string tank top.
"Hey honey, when did you get these, and why haven't I seen you wear them?" I asked my wife.
"Because they belong to your daughter," she replied.
"From now on I will fold linens and towels, anything clearly male, and anything with a team logo. The rest is all yours!"
That was only the first sign that I was living in a world that permitted little girls to grow into young women. Sometimes I walk into their room late at night. Where their cribs, and later their toddler beds used to be, three full sized beds take up practically the entire floor. In the beds are sleeping forms that take up way more space than I ever expected from people who once shared an abode the size of a basketball between my wife's hips and her ribcage.
Fortunately I have found a way to deal with the situation. Close my eyes. It turns out that most of what comes out of their mouths still sounds like girls -- asking questions about math homework, objecting to cleaning their room, comparing notes about their teachers with their friends. They don't act like women yet, even though I know that day is coming -- too soon.
If I keep my eyes closed, I can imagine I still have little girls running around my house.
About Don Staffin
Since 2004, Don Staffin has been writing a monthly newsletter, which he recently turned into a book called Postcards from the Garden of Estrogen (www.donstaffin.com).
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Rachel Friedman
Rachel@newsandexperts.com