18, duh...oh wait...that's not what you meant?! lol

I have many moments in my life that point to me gaining parts of adulthood...you know, leaving behind childish things and getting serious and all that. I would say the moment I woke up and realized I was an adult was when I already had 2-3 of my kids and I was working a full time job, having done so for years, but it was the moment I woke up and didn't want to go to work and realized that if I didn't, no one else would. All up to this point, I had been acting adult-like, working, earning, spending, eating, caring for a wife and kids, owning a house, etc. However, I'm very much still a kid. I love the most juvenile things, quite often. I'm like a little 12-13 year old boy trapped in a man's body...however, my mind has grown and matured enough that I can mask it during a full work day...yes, a full work day!
![unsplash](https://images.ecency.com/DQmbfbRb7638YcpP88TpvksgUQYJ2gnAuew7D5y35CykZvt/image.png)


It was the realization for me that it didn't matter what I wanted or how I felt, I had to provide. ***I*** had to take action in a consistent way so that all those who relied upon me could do so without wavering. It was tough. There was no set morning or day I can point to, but I do remember that moment sinking in.
![image.png](https://images.ecency.com/DQmZ4ptS7XRMg5PVa6P6SpUQv3Qg2pNFMPnFAMRrNSeQDmZ/image.png)


It's hard to be an adult...but I've done a pretty good job at it. Even then, I often hope for the day when I don't have to rush to the next dollar or fry my eyes on the computer screen like little eggs stuck to the skillet because not enough oil was used...I love my family and know that my daughters are most likely to marry someone like their dad. With that aim, I try to be the best father I can be. I try to be gentle, funny, and most importantly...there.

The kids with the biggest problems in the world...what is the most common thing we say? They must have...everyone now...***daddy issues***. 

If I want my children to grow up in great relationships, I must be the adult and prevent my children from having **daddy issues**. This sometimes means that I have to wake up 3 hours before they do so that I can do side hustles. Sometimes I have to sacrifice hours on end to get a degree so that I can raise the wage I earn from my side hustle (congrats to me, I just got a teaching gig at a local university!!!). Here's the issue...I don't want side hustles that pay meager wages. I want an entrepreneurial business that pays me 5x or 20x what I make at my J-O-B. I've been at my J-O-B for so long that it's now a C-A-R-E-E-R...ahhhhhhhhh!

aka...adulting...it's a tough business, but there's a day each of us has to wake up and face the facts...we have to be an adult until we get the excuse to go back into diapers...and at that point, they don't laugh as much as they did when we were in them the first time....
![unsplash](https://images.ecency.com/DQmU7Ve4MoGQ1M3uTQeuc59jSQjZbTxsDTRmt53wnnEzBQK/image.png)



When did you first realize you were an adult? Are you one yet? 🤣