LJI Second Chance- Blood Harmony
My eldest child turned 14 yesterday. She's my only daughter, and she's taught me so much about parenting and about love. We don't always see eye to eye though, and I didn't imagine our relationship would look the way it does when she was first born. I guess I assumed that Olivia and I would have the same kind of relationship as my mother and I did, which is foolish, but these are the things you learn only after you become a parent.
Olivia has an independent streak that I never seemed to gather up the nerve to have on my own. She's more likely to challenge me, which can be frustrating, but also helps me to learn things that I might not have encountered otherwise. At 14, she's at an age where I may not always be her favorite person, but I'm still the person she looks to if she hears a strange noise in the middle of the night or if she isn't feeling well. The "needing" her mommy moments stretch out fewer and further between, but they're still there, and that's very bittersweet.
Olivia will be the first of my children to go off to college, and I have no illusions about her staying home and outgrowing the teenage independence and becoming my best friend while she navigates college. She's going to have her own life and her own experiences, and I figure the next four years will be devoted to teaching self-confidence, the importance of education and communication, and self-reliance. As much as I want her to need her mama, it's important that she learns the best ways to take care of herself without me. So even though I get complaints now about her chores or needing to watch her baby cousin or walk the dog, these are all little ways we're working towards adulthood.
The thing is- she's smart, and she cares a lot less about what people think about her than I ever have. She has no inclination to please anyone who shows her attention. She loves who and what she loves, and she makes no apologies for it. Olivia is going to be just fine, and even if she doesn't always believe it, mom will always be her biggest fan.
Olivia has an independent streak that I never seemed to gather up the nerve to have on my own. She's more likely to challenge me, which can be frustrating, but also helps me to learn things that I might not have encountered otherwise. At 14, she's at an age where I may not always be her favorite person, but I'm still the person she looks to if she hears a strange noise in the middle of the night or if she isn't feeling well. The "needing" her mommy moments stretch out fewer and further between, but they're still there, and that's very bittersweet.
Olivia will be the first of my children to go off to college, and I have no illusions about her staying home and outgrowing the teenage independence and becoming my best friend while she navigates college. She's going to have her own life and her own experiences, and I figure the next four years will be devoted to teaching self-confidence, the importance of education and communication, and self-reliance. As much as I want her to need her mama, it's important that she learns the best ways to take care of herself without me. So even though I get complaints now about her chores or needing to watch her baby cousin or walk the dog, these are all little ways we're working towards adulthood.
The thing is- she's smart, and she cares a lot less about what people think about her than I ever have. She has no inclination to please anyone who shows her attention. She loves who and what she loves, and she makes no apologies for it. Olivia is going to be just fine, and even if she doesn't always believe it, mom will always be her biggest fan.