Advantages?

Some may say there are advantages to being a "young" mother. Part of me wishes that I had been a little older, a little wiser, a little more mature than I was at 20 years of age when I had Bryce. I was still a baby myself when I had Belle at 21 and Brady at 23. I believe I could've been a little more prepared emotionally, had I been a few years older than what I was. That being said, I don't believe I could've had the energy I needed to have three kids as close together as they are had I been older. While I wish sometimes I had been a little wiser, I wouldn't have changed anything. They are part of what has made me who I am today.

Because of many different variables, my age is often misjudged. I think one of those variables is that Bryce is almost 4'11" to my 5'1". Another one is that Hubby looks a little older than he actually is. I believe I have had one person guess my age within a year of my actual age. More often than not, I am guessed to be a lot younger than I am. Tonight was one of those nights. We made a quick trip to Lowes tonight, owing to a few projects that need to be completed around the house. As soon as we pulled up to a parking spot, Brady announced he needed to potty. Bad. So I grabbed him and walked to the restroom as Hubby got Bryce and Belle out of the car. Our particular Lowes has a restroom right behind the registers, on the front wall next to the exit. So I waited in front of the registers for Brady to come back out. While waiting, the cashier asked how we were doing (Bryce was with me by this point). After we exchanged polite "fine, you?" and responses, she proceeded to ask, "Are you glad to be back in school?" This stumped me for a few different reasons. First is that many people ask parents if they are glad school has started back up again after a vacation. Second is I just graduated from jr. college in May and I couldn't be certain that the cashier was not someone I had met in school. Third was that in the back of my mind I knew she was completely stumped about how old I actually was. When I looked at Bryce and didn't say yes but didn't say no, just kinda made a face, she replied "at least you get to see your friends." Yes, that's right, I'm in high school again. I am not a mother of three with an associates degree, I am a hormonal teen watching over brothers. Am I a junior? A senior? I'm not naive enough to think I could pass for younger. But then again, I didn't think I could be guessed as a high school student any longer either.