Who cares? (I do.)
27 August 2009
Something I both love and hate about parenthood is how it forces you to not care what others think. Yesterday morning, McKenna left the house wearing a green, orange, white, pink, yellow, and red striped dress, her purple crocs, and a (blue) Royals hat. We were on our way to a friend’s house, but of course we were stopping by Starbucks on our way to pick up coffee. And of course the drive-thru line was about 20 cars deep. And McKenna didn’t want to leave her hat in the car.
These are those over-explainer type moments where I wanted to tell everyone in Starbucks that McKenna has decided she knows better than me what accessories look best with each outfit, and that I was aware nothing she had on matched. (Though any of the parents in the coffee shop probably guessed what was going on.)
And the other day when McKenna and I were outside playing, she decided she wanted to wear her rain coat even though it was dry as could be outside, plus the thermometer was pushing 75 degrees. I just knew I looked like one of the moms I used to see in Orlando who bundled up her kids when the temperature dropped below 80. (Those were the days that we’d go to Disney and the tourists were in shorts and the locals were in down coats.)
The last 20 months of McKenna’s life have brought me a long way in regards to caring what people think of me. Kids can be embarrassing and unpredictable. Like when you’re in the grocery store and your daughter suddenly decides she’s done being in the shopping cart and starts screaming her head off. Or when she won’t stop picking her nose. Or when you’re at somebody’s house, you ask her to do something, and she gives you this look like, “No, I won’t, and what exactly are you going to do about it?”
Not that I’ve experienced any of those things…
I really hope I’ll someday get to the point where I don’t care at all about the opinions of others, where the thought never crosses my mind, “Oh my gosh, what must they think of me?!?!” I still have a long way to go. McKenna’s doing her best to get me there, though.
Happy Thursday everybody.
Comments
So with you. Xoe insists on picking out her own clothes, often topping it with a fairy skirt. Perhaps wings. A crown. Sometimes a long bead necklace put under one arm like a sash. Then she’ll finish it off with a pair of winter shoes in the heat of summer. I used to want to top it with a sign that said, “She picked this out herself, and it wasn’t worth the fight.” LOL. Now I just smile at all the grinning old ladies we walk past, who all coo and say, “What a princess—look at that pretty crown.”
My girl will reply, “Thank you. I’m a Fairy Princess, and my name is Christmas. (Look Mommy, I made friends with the lady.)”
Motherhood will either drive you insane or get your over that embarrassment, lol.
Posted by Roseanna on 27 August 2009
Ah, the lessons children can teach us if we let them.
Posted by Beth Hines on 27 August 2009