Well, another Father’s Day is on its way this week but this one is hitting home maybe a bit harder than the others. As many parents have told me in the past, things will go by quickly, and that realization begins to hit home as James, our oldest, moves from a junior at Mount Si High School to senior status. Lynnae, right behind, will be a junior next year.

The kids used to write columns for the paper when they were in grade school because it seemed a logical thing to do. After all, they spent many hours, day and night, here at the offices as we put the paper together. Our lives, in those days, revolved around running a small business.

So now my boy is going to be a senior at the same school from which I graduated a couple of decades ago. It’s that last stretch of time when he will go to school and come home, albeit not always at the time we would like.

When people would tell me to enjoy time with them, that it goes by fast, I actually was very attentive. We do quite a few things with our kids and spend as much time with them as we can. But like most teenagers, as they grow older they have other things to do, life to explore. We are lucky parents in that they like to be home. They aren’t always gone, although James has found that “Texas hold-em” with the boys in Fall City can tempt him to head out a bit too much.

It really does go by fast and now I know what my parents must have gone through in those latter years of high school, though I was a lot more inclined to be in trouble than my kids. They are far smarter than I was at their age.

Sometimes when I attended a game or some other event this past year, it would hit me. Oh crap (I sometimes say worse words), we are almost done with having to run to various functions, scrambling to get off work in time to see one of the kids bat or make a tackle.

I remember when we first started the Little League football and baseball thing, thinking how much of a hassle it was to get the kids fed, suited up and to practice. Looking back, I kind of miss those days. Talking to parents along the sidelines was our entire social life for a few years. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.

So what do parents do when their kids finally leave? That’s the stage that will begin for us at this time next year. Thankfully, I have heard that kids take a little longer leaving the nest these days then we did a generation ago. Also, very thankfully, Lynnae will still be home to fill our days and keep us from running around the house in our underwear (She gets really embarrassed).

I’m sure James will be home whenever he’s hungry, needs clothes washed or just wants to relax. He seems to like hanging out with dad. Lynnae, on the other hand, has an independent streak, reminiscent of my own at that age. But, as is usually the case, there will be more projects, I hope, to do with both of them as they get older. Renovation of a house or some other great bonding project.

So for those of you who may be celebrating your first Father’s Day, enjoy it. The years go by pretty fast. And for Ben, our editor who hopefully is enjoying fatherhood by now, have a great Father’s Day.