Responsible Adults

Sometimes being the responsible adult isn't all that fun. But then we have to remember there were many, many times in our lives we wondered if we'd ever get to this point... the point of being grown-up AND responsible.

The not-so-fun part of being a responsible adult came today at work. Well, work in general. We need to do it. Even on days when I am looking out the window at the sunshine and thinking about golf. I always get the itch during Masters week (or what we like to call Hole-y Week). But no, I stayed put at work -- mainly because there is still piles and piles of snow everywhere so no courses around here are open yet anyway.

But next week, well, I can't guarantee how responsible I'll be.

Another interesting challenge I have is dressing like a grownup. Not that I buy clothes that often, but I can tell you where I head first if I am -- to the "cool" clothes in the Juniors section. I know, I am on the cusp of 43 years old. I have to move on and dress like a mature woman. Can I do that and not be boring?

With our friends' wedding coming up this weekend, I knew I needed to get a new dress. Hey, hubby will be in tux so I better look good. The problem is that I donated all my "old" dresses and skirts to Goodwill and any nice clothes I have are too work-y looking. So Jim and I stopped at Kohl's on the way home from work. That way I could get something he liked -- hopefully -- without compromising comfort.

We get in there and I say, very grownup-like, "OK let's bypass the Juniors section and head straight to the Women's Department -- and let's hope there's something that doesn't make me look matronly." It honestly took less than 3 minutes to find a dress and coverup. I took two sizes into the dressing room, squealed in delight that the smaller one fit and was thrilled with the dress. It's both pretty and cute... in both our opinions.

Thankfully, when we got home, we realized my boots would look great with the outfit so I didn't have to worry about buying new shoes ... which would equate to 3- or 4-inch uncomfortable heels if I am still letting hubby dress me. Phew.

Our other act of responsible adulthood occurred on the way home. For most of us, one of our first grownup responsibilities was voting. And today was an election day.

Around here, we had few races but, due to all the contentious activities happening in Madison and throughout the state, there were big crowds. We actually had to wait in line about 10 minutes. No complaining here. I love to see that level of participation!

I also love the I am no longer working at the newspaper and covering the results until deep in the night. Now on election night, I can be home by supper, hang up my "responsible adult" hat and get to bed early.

That's what we grownups do.