If only I knew now EVERYTHING I thought I knew then..........

How many times have you heard the phrase or a variation on it of: If only I knew then what I know now? Well it got me thinking the other night as I was having a lively discussion with my 4 year old about how she knew everything and of course I as her mother knew nothing. It made me realize how many times I thought in my head that I was going to do things so much differently with my children than my parents were doing with me. How I was going to be their friend as well as their parent. Well I have to say it's a lot harder to have to be their parent than I thought. In terms of children we all want our children to like us as their parents and not want them to die of embarrasment at the prospect of being seen in public with them, but at the end of the day what we really want is for them to become productive members of society, to be happy and to feel loved. I hope that I've instilled in my children just how very much I love them. I tell them as many times as I possibly can and yet somehow I know that in just a few short precious years my ears may be burning with the infamous "I hate you, Mom." I think back to the times I said this to my parents for their utter lack of coolness refusing to let me do something that was probably stupid but that I wanted to do because everyone else was doing it and I wish I could go back in time and take it all back. Take back every mean, vile, nasty thing I ever did, said, or thought when I was younger. I remember thinking that my child would never say anything hurtful to me because I'd raise them better than my parents were raising me. If only to be able to go back to a time when I knew EVERYTHING........