I received some great comments on my recent post, Imagine. One in particular was so great in fact, that it inspired a whole new post. It was left by the lovely Lana at Mommies Lost Her Mind. If you've never been to her blog, be sure to go check her out and leave some love. Lana was one of my very first ever bloggy friends and I love reading about what's going on in her life with 3 princesses of her own!
Anyway, Lana left this comment for me:
"Ha! I totally agree. What I find to be funny is that when my kids were babies and toddlers I was always getting these helpful little parenting emails. Now that I could probably actually use them? Nada."
I used to get those "Your Baby This Week/Month/Year" emails from Babycenter.com too. Well Lana, I thought I'd take it upon myself to draft up a little "Parenting Email Update" Babycenter.com style, for those of us delving into the world of non-babies. I hope this is what you were looking for (wink! wink!).
Congratulations! Your child is now 8 years old!
How they're growing: faster than humanly possible. You might consider stocking up in cheap flip flops because they won't be able to wear shoes longer than 6 months at most. But don't expect this trend in growth to be reflected in their eating habits. Although they will constantly complain about being hungry, they will be very particular about the food that they eat and will make dinnertime your worst nightmare because you failed to once again serve macaroni and cheese (for the 5th time that week).
What they're learning: how to master the eye roll and smart aleck response. They will begin to amaze you with their ability to appear to hear what you're asking them to do and yet completely and utterly ignore said request. They are old enough at this point to completely understand cause and effect but the good old fashioned time out rarely works anymore and only until you threaten to take away their ipod or DS will they actually take you seriously.
What they're feeling: God only knows! Welcome to the tumultuous times of the pre-pre-teen. Hormones are raging and often when you ask "what's wrong" you will be answered with a very helpful "I don't know!". Triggers can range from traumatic (failing a test) to completely not a big deal (sister got to wear a dress and I didn't). Be prepared to be completely clueless in how to navigate these waters because what worked last time won't work this time. Just sayin'. The good news? You've got about 10 more years to master coping techniques!
How your life is changing: buckle up and hang on for the ride. Love, love, love on them. Allow yourself the freedom to mourn the loss of your baby and revel in the young person standing before you. Laugh with them, cry with them, hold them when they need to be held. No longer a baby, not yet an adult. You are still mama. And always will be.
*remember each child develops at their own rate. Some lucky mamas get to experience all this sooner than others!
My friends, if you were to draft a "parenting email update", what would it say?
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