Two ears, one mouth. TWO ears. ONE mouth. I have said that sentence approximately eleventy billion times this month, trying to get you to listen twice as much as you talk. And I have had zero success, eleventy billion times. Trying to teach someone something new when that someone talks more than they listen is, um, an adventure. If only you were talking about how blessed you were to be my daughter (cuz you are) or how blessed I am to be your momma (cuz I am), then maybe I wouldn't want to pull my hair out. But, alas, no. As I'm trying to explain - literally, as the words are spilling out of my lips, you're simultaneously telling me you don't understand what to do.
Me: So the main char-----
You: What does this even MEAN? I don't underSTAND!
Me: Um, well, I was actually in the middle of explaining it, if you'd like to open up your ear holes for a bit.
You: *hmph*
Me: So what main character of the story do-----
You: How am I supposed to KNOW this?!
Me: Dude, seriously? If you'd let me finish a complete thought, you might find that I can clear up the confusion you have - but only if you listen twice as much as you talk.
You: Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine.
I've noticed that many of our school days have ended a with "fine" containing about 75 Is which, in turn, ends with lost privileges (Momma ain't got no time for sassiness). It's clear that both of us are ready for summer vacation.
You lost Tooth #6 (the one next to your front left tooth) a few weeks ago. It seemed to go from kind of loose to oh-my-word-pull-that-gross-thing-before-you-swallow-it in the matter of minutes. Thankfully you're not dramatic at all so the whole tooth-losing process was a breeze.
HA. I'm such a riot.
The tooth-losing process was extraordinarily painful for all our ears. You whined for hours about the potential blood ("Yes, there will be blood, but not a whole lot. Remember the previous five teeth you've lost?"), the potential pain ("Eh, it may hurt a little bit but as soon as it's out, it'll stop hurting. Again, remember the previous five teeth you've lost?"), and the best way to pull it out ("No, Mommy does *not* like pulling teeth, but Mommy will do it if you need her to. Cuz she's cool like that. Seriously, do you have any recollection of the previous five teeth?!"). Eventually you decided that you wanted Daddy to do it, but once it was discovered that Daddy-sized fingers don't fit onto Natalie-sized baby teeth, we went with Plan B. And, in this case, Plan B meant a pair of hemostats that Pep had given us a while back. Those little suckers were the perfect - once the hemostat was on your tooth, Daddy gave it a pull and popped your tooth out two seconds later.
It's funny how one missing tooth can change a smile, but you look completely different with this tooth gone. The tooth you lost is the tooth that often gets painted black to look like it's missing when someone is pretending to be a hillbilly in a school play.
The big day finally came. The Big Day. Your gymnastics exhibition was yesterday and it was everything you hoped it was going to be. You danced (and had Excited Feet the entire time - you couldn't stop bouncing your feet the entire routine, even when your feet weren't necessarily supposed to move), you balance beam'd, you trampoline'd, you low bar'd, and you vaulted. You stuck and saluted, you giggled and cheered for yourself, you had the best time ever.
I've always rolled my eyes at the whole Participation Medal notion that seems to be so popular. You showed up for every game? Here's a medal for doing what you're supposed to do. You have no discernable talent at this particular sport? Here's a trophy anyway.
However.
You (and everyone) received participation medals at the exhibition. You looked as proud as if you had won gold medal at the Olympics. So while I'm still not a fan of participation medals in general, I promise I'll continue my feelings about it at a later time. But for right now, I'm too busy being a proud momma watching my baby wear her medal around the house and loving every minute of it.
Hugs and smooches,
Mommy and Daddy
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Headlines for May 1, 2016:
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- U2 Guitarist Becomes First to Play the Sistine Chapel
- German Artist Jan Vormann Uses Lego to Put Colorful Twist on Urban Design
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