Disappointment

I walked into Bells room the other day and found a lovely spot on the wall where she peeled off the paint. There is now a random white circle about the size of a soccer ball beside her bed. I was furious, livid, enraged, you name it. I didn’t yell, I didn’t scream, and I didn’t spank, I just got sad. I was sad. We spent a lot of time on her room and bought a random oops paint from the store. It took us a few weeks to get it all painted, trimmed, and set up. I was hurt that she would think that was a good idea and disappointed that she tried to hide it. I let her know how I felt and she cried and cried, and then she apologized to me. That was the end of it. She understood the feelings behind it, not just a time out and me yelling.

 

Odd Man Out

I tried today, I really tried, and failed miserably. I see these same PAC moms every day. For nearly 9 months we have been sitting at the school’s entrance together. Me... Them... we’re just sort of impartial, not avoiding each other nor going out of our way to talk either. But today I did it; I worked up the courage to jump into a conversation. You want to know what I learned. I learned that making friends is way harder than when you’re 5. I learned that rejection hurts... a lot. I learned that I’m nothing like most of the parents out there. Their kids all ran up to them, threw their backpacks at them and ran off. They were cold, sullen, and un-friendly kids.

I know my parenting style isn’t for everyone, but it works for me, and I would rather have no school mom friends than have my kid act like that!