Have no fear ! The Dynosoar is here !!!!

Good news first; Things ain't all that bad for you right now, you do not have the personal physical problems that come with miles on the chassis
and you only have one teen to worry about .....

Ok, Bad News; If you allow it to, things ain't gonna get any better, that bundle of Kindergarten joy is soon to be a raging horomonal trainwreck,
probably right in the middle of your own personal mid-life crisis...

It won't be as bad if you're prepared for it, but it'll still be ugly.

You don't have it all that bad, I'll write an article right now to give you an idea of the extreme ( if nothing else you'll be able to rationalize that it can't possibly get as bad as some have had.....)

So it goes....

Ah Dyno, I can't remember if you ever said you have children? Spoken like someone who doesn't.

When it comes to teenagers and their wants, note, not needs, wants, it gets really "hairy". Boys, clothes, girlfriends, self-doubts, cleanliness, homework, more self-doubts. It's hard for them and even harder for you trying to guide them and to see them go through it all. Knowing that at the end of the day, it will all be alright. As long as there is some parent/guardian who will be there to guide them; and they need that adult factor in their life.

You're right about the kindergarten/trainwreck part. But they too even as young as that have their own needs and can be a handful. Thank heavens like Dev said, it's simple right now, but needs are there none the less.

And no matter how prepared you think you are for them, you never are. You can only take one day at a time and love them even more for it.

Don't worry Peter, there will be days when you feel really, really old, and other times you'll feel able to climb Mount Everest and beat your chest like Tarzan!

Ah, forever,
Yes I have had kids ( actually my wives did ), and as Bludev laments, he's learning that he's no longer an individual, his actions have repercussions that effect other lives that are now his responsibility.
It's not all bad, just different.....

Suddenly I am growing up even faster than I already was.

Growing up and growing old are not quite the same... I am more than twice your age and still consider myself young.

Age is very relative. Sometimes that is a boon, other times it is a bane.

When I am around my daughter's friends and thier families, I am always the very youngest, and I feel like it. But when I am around my med school companions, and have just so much more responsibility than they do, I end up feeling very old.

These days, the feeling old predominates. It is good, and I don't mind. But I am feeling it.