I stepped into our future last night. Took my 13 yo cousin to Georgetown to go shopping (her big wish on this trip). I left the lil ones behind because, although the 13 yo is a fabulous kid, they all move at such different paces and want such different things... so I left Bill with the Wees and took Maya.
It was complete culture shock for me.
1) you can leave 13 yos out of sight (though perhaps you should not). I still hover because my kids are small and it was nice and a little weird to be able to browse the books at the bookstore in peace.
2) they move even more slowly than toddlers. I can't tell why, but there is no appreciable increase in speed between 3 and 13, just different reasons for the delay.
3) they have an absolute lack of decision-making ability, this one due to intense brain power and overthinking. Thirty minutes in the changing room should be enough to make nearly any life decision, much less a decision between small and medium of the same top.
If you saw me out last night, I was the mom-est of all mom-like people in Georgetown. I am not the hot, hip mom. I'm the pudgy stout earthy mom who does not look cool sitting on the mom-bench at the Urban Outfitters. It's a shirt/tunic/dress thing and I show my distance from popular fashion because I can't determine which is which any more. I might get points for reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to kill the time. I got a pass this time because I was taking my cousin out in the big city - which means I was kinda cool - but my own kids won't cut me any slack.
I came home last night and cuddled my happy clingy 3 yo and my happy sleepless 5 mo old and begged them not to grow up too fast. I'm not ready for long long long conversations about which lipgloss better expresses your innermost being. I'm not ready for the mom bench at the teeny bopper stores. Not yet. And maybe not ever. How do you raise tomboys? Anyow know?
It was complete culture shock for me.
1) you can leave 13 yos out of sight (though perhaps you should not). I still hover because my kids are small and it was nice and a little weird to be able to browse the books at the bookstore in peace.
2) they move even more slowly than toddlers. I can't tell why, but there is no appreciable increase in speed between 3 and 13, just different reasons for the delay.
3) they have an absolute lack of decision-making ability, this one due to intense brain power and overthinking. Thirty minutes in the changing room should be enough to make nearly any life decision, much less a decision between small and medium of the same top.
If you saw me out last night, I was the mom-est of all mom-like people in Georgetown. I am not the hot, hip mom. I'm the pudgy stout earthy mom who does not look cool sitting on the mom-bench at the Urban Outfitters. It's a shirt/tunic/dress thing and I show my distance from popular fashion because I can't determine which is which any more. I might get points for reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to kill the time. I got a pass this time because I was taking my cousin out in the big city - which means I was kinda cool - but my own kids won't cut me any slack.
I came home last night and cuddled my happy clingy 3 yo and my happy sleepless 5 mo old and begged them not to grow up too fast. I'm not ready for long long long conversations about which lipgloss better expresses your innermost being. I'm not ready for the mom bench at the teeny bopper stores. Not yet. And maybe not ever. How do you raise tomboys? Anyow know?
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