Rainbows and Thunderstorms
Yesterday morning, I woke up to a bright-eyed-ready-to-take-on-the-day Hadley June. She was talking a mile a minute and wanted to "cook something."
I don't know about you, but I do not like to talk before I have had a COMPLETE cup of coffee. I agreed to let her make me an omelet, complete with chopped green peppers, cheese, and bacon pieces. She also made her dad one, and the three of us sat together to eat breakfast. She set the table with placemats and silverware and even served me all my favorite hot sauces and peppers.
About an hour later, after watching "Kids Baking Championships," Hadley wanted to "bake something." (I'm not going to lie. Most of the time she says this, I roll my eyes inside my head, because I JUST CLEANED UP THE KITCHEN, AND SHE WANTS TO BAKE SOMETHING! I digress...) She made lemon cookies from a box of lemon cake mix (who knew?), along with a giant lemon cookie from the same mix. (You just leave out the water, and it is DELICIOUS!)
After the baking extravaganza, Hadley says, "I want to have movie night. I love movie nights. Can we buy boxes of candy? Popcorn? Lie in the floor? We haven't done that for a long time. I love movie nights."
So, after our dinner, Hadley made a place on the floor with pillows, stuffed animals, a foam mattress topper from her bed, still covered in her sheet (because "I know Mom's butt hurts on the floor"), and boxes of Sour Patch Kids and gummy bears. I made Charlie join us, because sometimes he needs a break from the PS4, and sometimes the whole family just needs to sit in the same room for over an hour. We watched "The Explorers" from 1985, and I think I only fell asleep a couple of times, so SUCCESS!
The day didn't come and go without conflict, of course. Hadley is such an emotional person. She blew up at dinner, because I told her to spread out her chips for melting cheese to make nachos. She blew up at me earlier, because I told her she couldn't quit gymnastics. Again.
Her zest for life, however, is something I wish I could bottle. She loves sit-down dinners as a family and serving all of us. She loves a reason to get up in the morning and do something special. She loves movie nights and game days. She loves fishing with her dad and swimming in any body or trickle of water. She loves planning birthdays, making the cakes, and presenting the gifts. She loves ALL holidays and usually insists I dress up in holiday colors. She works so hard at everything she does that she makes me want to work harder.
I refuse to allow Hadley to lose any of these qualities because of fear. She wants to quit gymnastics, because of fear of what people might say about her using the girls' bathroom or being in the "wrong class." She is smart enough to make up other reasons for wanting to quit, but I know the real reason. We have talked about this many times. I told her one day, "Fear is healthy. Fear of copperheads might keep you from being bitten. Fear that keeps you from doing things you want to or should do is not. You recognize it and face it head on. You work through it." I won't let her quit, at least until she reaches her goal of doing a backhandspring. She is so close!
Parenting is hard. It's like being under a rainbow with cartoon birds flying around you, bliss head to toe, and suddenly you're struck by lightning, only to find yourself a minute later back under the rainbow with the birds tweeting again.
I just try to remember that with every lightning strike, there comes a new rainbow.
I don't know about you, but I do not like to talk before I have had a COMPLETE cup of coffee. I agreed to let her make me an omelet, complete with chopped green peppers, cheese, and bacon pieces. She also made her dad one, and the three of us sat together to eat breakfast. She set the table with placemats and silverware and even served me all my favorite hot sauces and peppers.
About an hour later, after watching "Kids Baking Championships," Hadley wanted to "bake something." (I'm not going to lie. Most of the time she says this, I roll my eyes inside my head, because I JUST CLEANED UP THE KITCHEN, AND SHE WANTS TO BAKE SOMETHING! I digress...) She made lemon cookies from a box of lemon cake mix (who knew?), along with a giant lemon cookie from the same mix. (You just leave out the water, and it is DELICIOUS!)
After the baking extravaganza, Hadley says, "I want to have movie night. I love movie nights. Can we buy boxes of candy? Popcorn? Lie in the floor? We haven't done that for a long time. I love movie nights."
So, after our dinner, Hadley made a place on the floor with pillows, stuffed animals, a foam mattress topper from her bed, still covered in her sheet (because "I know Mom's butt hurts on the floor"), and boxes of Sour Patch Kids and gummy bears. I made Charlie join us, because sometimes he needs a break from the PS4, and sometimes the whole family just needs to sit in the same room for over an hour. We watched "The Explorers" from 1985, and I think I only fell asleep a couple of times, so SUCCESS!
The day didn't come and go without conflict, of course. Hadley is such an emotional person. She blew up at dinner, because I told her to spread out her chips for melting cheese to make nachos. She blew up at me earlier, because I told her she couldn't quit gymnastics. Again.
Her zest for life, however, is something I wish I could bottle. She loves sit-down dinners as a family and serving all of us. She loves a reason to get up in the morning and do something special. She loves movie nights and game days. She loves fishing with her dad and swimming in any body or trickle of water. She loves planning birthdays, making the cakes, and presenting the gifts. She loves ALL holidays and usually insists I dress up in holiday colors. She works so hard at everything she does that she makes me want to work harder.
I refuse to allow Hadley to lose any of these qualities because of fear. She wants to quit gymnastics, because of fear of what people might say about her using the girls' bathroom or being in the "wrong class." She is smart enough to make up other reasons for wanting to quit, but I know the real reason. We have talked about this many times. I told her one day, "Fear is healthy. Fear of copperheads might keep you from being bitten. Fear that keeps you from doing things you want to or should do is not. You recognize it and face it head on. You work through it." I won't let her quit, at least until she reaches her goal of doing a backhandspring. She is so close!
Parenting is hard. It's like being under a rainbow with cartoon birds flying around you, bliss head to toe, and suddenly you're struck by lightning, only to find yourself a minute later back under the rainbow with the birds tweeting again.
I just try to remember that with every lightning strike, there comes a new rainbow.
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