And Away I Go!

There comes a time when you have to put on your big girl panties and take a leap.  This is my time.

With word that this site is shutting its doors at the end of the month, I’ve started inching my way – and my words – over to my very own blog on Word Press.  I hope you’ll follow me there and spread the word (http://tinadrakakis.wordpress.com/). 

This is my final blog here.  I’ve relied on the audience of Skirt! magazine to boost my snarky Eyerollingmom blogs from suburban obscurity to well, virtual obscurity and now I’ve got to sink or swim on my own two internet feet.

My very first blog hit the Skirt! site a little over 5 years ago -- before everyone started doing it --  and anyone who does it knows too well:  your life becomes an open book once you make the decision to tell your own stories.  It helps if you’ve got a good-natured family (and it’s certainly a bonus if your kids feign interest and hardly ever read your stuff) but it’s a rollercoaster for sure.  I am thankful beyond words for all the support I’ve received here over the years.

A bonus:  I’ve made a lot of bona fide friends on this site, which actually bolsters my belief in the success of internet dating.  I figure, if I can fall in love with women from behind my laptop, I guess some men can, too (whaddaya know:  one less thing to pass judgment on!).

So in the hopes you’ll share this with all your friends, I’m choosing to go out on a note of parental wisdom. 

I don’t have much.  But I – like the mighty Oprah -- do have one thing I know for sure. 

The expression This, too, shall pass…should be stenciled right above every mother’s mirror in every home in the universe so it’s the first thing we see every day instead of another pound, or bag or wrinkle.  (It would be even better if it was etched in the bottom of wine glasses, too.  Maybe I should patent that?  I digress…)

When my oldest son was in high school, I was convinced he was headed to juvvie.  His reckless behavior and poor choices transformed me into a legitimate lunatic.  It made me insane with worry … despair … and disbelief (disbelief as in how in Heaven did two marginally intelligent parents procreate such an imbecile?).  Well, it turns out, I now have the pleasure  -- two blink-of-an-eye years later – of sharing laughs with the same young man – a USAF Reserve honors graduate, who works, goes to school and beats the beJesus out of his brothers.  It passed.

My daughter, who spent her adolescence with her head rotating on her neck …

with her bedroom door off its hinges for weeks at a time…

with her eyes perpetually planted skyward (HEY! That’s MY gig!)…

now calls me regularly from college just to check in and chat. It passed, too.

My middle son, who actually spent the entire first term of fourth grade with his head on his desk, actually excels at school.  He also cracks me up.  No pun intended, but he passed, too.

My baby – now at eye level – my ugliest, chubbiest baby, is a beautiful charmer.

Good thing THAT passed, too.  An ugly baby, can you imagine?  Shudder.

You name it, I’ve lost sleep over it:

developmental delays ….  hearing loss … scoliosis … bullying …. beer …… pot  …  curfews   …  grades  … popularity …  sneaking out …   sneaking in  …looks …   sports playing time …   driving …

Good God.  I have fretted and made myself sick over so many things already, if I listed all of them I’d seem embarrassingly certifiable.  Sound familiar?  It should.

We are all one big, happy, emotional, stereotype of moms simply wanting to know we’re not alone in this great big circus.

The good news?

It all passes.

The best part?

I am nowhere near being done with parenting. 

I’ve got a lot more blogging to do and I so hope you’ll come along for the ride.

I’m taking the leap (with my lipstick in my back pocket) and hopefully will see you on the other side!

Thanks so much for tuning in!

Follow my new blog site:  http://tinadrakakis.wordpress.com/

And be sure to follow me on Facebook:  www.facebook/.com/eyerollingmom