I think that this past week of working on the nursery for Lydia has really helped it to set in that I am having a GIRL. Crazy when I think about it. So now I have some fears about what the next how many years are going to be like as Sarah and I try to raise Lydia the best we know that's good for her and us. I understand there will be things I will not be able to control or change. There will be actions I will not be able to stop. She will learn things on her own to certain degree. I think like my parents we will need to be there to guide her in the right direction and make sure if she falls it is not to hard and that she gets right back up. I have no doubt Sarah and I will be great at this. But with that said here are some milestone fears that I do have of raising a girl. I have some fears of just being a dad, no matter what the sex is. But those are for a different time.
Puberty: The whole menstruation, buying a bra, shaving her legs, needing deodorant, skin problems era is taunting me already. Now I am lucky that Sarah will be there to guide her threw all this stuff but I will be involved in some way. I guess just me knowing it is happening and is going to happen is enough. I remember my skin problems I had through puberty, it was not fun. Or the need to shave in the 4th grade. I hate my hairy body.
Sex: Puberty inevitably leads to sex– learning about sex, talking about sex, thinking about sex and having sex. While I prefer to believe my Lydia will stay chaste forever, I know that is simply not the case. I pray that Sarah and I do a good job in teaching her self-respect and understanding the consequences of her actions. I pray she only encounters nice boys, like I was in high school.
Mean Girls: This one probably scares me the most. Now I don't have many memories of not being part of the fun, cool and exciting group. I do know that somehow sometimes I ended up on the side of being the mean one. Whether it was to girls or guys, I did sometimes. I know I can't change that today but I hope Lydia doesn't have to deal with guys like me or even worst mean girls. I guess she will be lucky when she gets to high school Izzy will be there to show her the way with the older kids. But it will be the start of school in Kindergarten up to 8th grade. That's when it will start.
Don't get me wrong I am very excited about having a girl. I know if it was a boy I would have a list here also. The only difference would be mean boys instead of mean girls. Oh yeah and it would be about boners and not menstruation. Either way it is scary.