So far I think I’ve handled this “single parenting” thing pretty well, no near death experiences- that’s something isn’t it? I mean my daughter is a beautiful, kind, generous and thriving 10 year old girl who just happens to be a pre-teen who can go from 0 to Dragon in 2.2 seconds!
I mean what the heck happened to the little girl who would beg me to jump in puddles, dance in the isle at the supermarket, wait patiently to be read to and tucked in at night? Ya know-the one without the crazy mood swings and the desire to shave her legs?
It feels like just yesterday I was tightening her ponytail at the park, now I’m googling “best razor for tweens.” Is it me or is it happening earlier and way faster than it did when we were young? She talks about plucking her eyebrows and shaving her legs- and get this, we were driving down a highway a few days back- when she asked if her legs were the only thing she could shave because she had hair “down there” and wanted to get rid of it-(insert brake squealing and heart failure) WHY DIDN’T SOMEONE PREPARE ME FOR THIS? I mean, a little heads up would have been nice, like a 15 or 16 year notice would have been much appreciated. I can handle the training bras and even the shaving but it’s the dragon that comes along with these things that terrifies me…
I can remember when I was a teen and my mother and I would argue, she would say “I hope one day you have a daughter who treats you this way, you will see”- is this what she was talking about?! Is this it?! IS IT GAME TIME?! Yup.
The next few years will be challenging, for one, have you ever tried to tame a dragon?! From what I hear, it is nearly impossible as, well, duh! If anyone had ever lived to tell the story we wouldn’t be telling our children “dragons aren’t real” when they ask us to check under the bed for them. But what I can do is be mindful of the changes she is going through, allow myself a time-out when I need it, invest in a good pair of running shoes (exercise is a GREAT stress reliever) and keep a bottle of wine handy for those “emergency” situations.
And if all else fails- CALL GRANDMA
Cheers!
