Editors Note: I wrote this a LONG time ago (in a state of mind far, far away). Justice is gone (you can take that any way you want). My kid is all grown up. BUT… it is time for school to start and my friends Janelle and Bilgen are 1 year away from middle school. So, I consider this fair warning of what’s to come.

There are some things that a father should not have to learn.  That is how I will choose to remember middle school.

It was August of 2010, and time to go back-to-school shopping.  Mom was not well, so Dad jumped in to take his little girl shopping.

And she was a little girl.  We went to South Coast Plaza and looked through all the fun stores we always had – Puzzle Zoo, the carousel, and Macy’s Home Store (what a precocious kid, knowing exactly where her father shopped!).

We went to Justice, a clothing store that was perfect for kids her age.  For the first time, my daughter went around picking out all sorts of cute clothes, particularly these nice little tank tops. I was having a great time.

And then it happened.  We were checking out in a very long line and she turned to me and said. “You know what’s also good about these tops Daddy?  They are all ready for training bras”.

To which I said:  “That’s great, Mollie.  Your Mom can help you with that.”

And inside I said: 

“NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Exactly when did my daughter get ready to grow up and have boobies?  I mean, I knew it would happen, but in a JUSTICE???  And how exactly did she know that about these tops?  I couldn’t tell – was she squirreling away a laptop to do research on the internet? As far as I could tell, there was NO justice to be had.

We are now at the graduation (er., promotion?) from middle school to high school. As an aside – promotion sounds like she’ll be getting some sort of raise, benefits package and stock options. But not on MY salary – her allowance stays at minimum wage.

So, again, my wife is unavailable on a Thursday, and Miss M tells me that she needs shoes to go with her pretty new graduation dress. Dad to the rescue, again!

Of course, Justice is long gone from our repertoire. I pack her up and off to Kohls we go.  We’re looking through the shoes.  I was having a great time.

And then it happened.  My beautiful little girl picks out these shoes with very high heels.  “They’ll go perfect with my dress, Dad.” I am no longer Daddy to her. 

She puts on these shoes. She walks towards me pretty steadily given that she is wearing something that I estimate makes her as tall as the Empire State Building. She looks very grown up and pretty; I expect sailors to be coming up the aisle. And she explains to me that these are 4 inch heels, as I was looking for a ruler to figure out exactly how they fit such large heels in the box.

I said:  “They’re very nice Mollie, but I think your Mom might want to help you”.

And inside I said: 

“NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

OK, I’ve gotten used to the fact that my little girl is now taller than her mother.  But exactly when did she get so grown up as to look like that?  And exactly where was that laptop that she brought in so that she could know exactly how heels were sized?

Bear in mind, this is my LITTLE girl.  She isn’t supposed to be growing like this. I think she has 40 more years until boys are coming. But now I know, very painfully, that there is only a short time remaining that she will be my little girl.

Everyone will undoubtedly have a way of remembering how their child entered and exited the middle school years. This is how I will choose to remember it. I only hope I make it through high school. There’s only so much education a father can take.