While giving TD a bath yesterday the subject of my birthday happened to come up. As of Wednesday I will no longer be a Triple Threat but Trente-Quatre. Another year come and gone.While washing a particularly precious bath toy TD said, "Mommy, your birthday is this week?! I will have to buy you a present. It will be jewelry. A ring. You like rings. Great big ones!"The kid is so right. I'm like a freakin' magpie. Oversized cocktail rings from anywhere be it Target, Etsy, H&M, B&R or something nicer I don't care, I love them. That girl knows her Momma. Too bad she can't drive. … [Read more...]
They Have Computers in Jersey, Don’t They?
Scene: I am on the phone with TD. Me in my CA hotel room, she at my parents home.TD: "Where are you now Mommy?"V: "I'm in California, pumpkin."TD: "Are you going to New Jersey next?"V: "Err..no. Not New Jersey."TD: "Is that because there are no computers in New Jersey?" Man, I really miss that kid. That other one too. What's her name again? I mean what mother that works or travels for occasionally for work actually misses their kids, right? Heh. … [Read more...]
You’re a Bad Mommy
Scene: In the girls bathroom, brushing TD's hair. We are in get ready for school mode.TD: (frowning at her reflection in the mirror. A permanent scowl has been on her face all morning.) "Mommy, you are a bad mommy."Me: (Stifling a sigh and the urge to rip through her hair because all morning has been this way. The frowns. The whines. The cries. The dissatisfaction.) "I'm a bad mommy? Hm..." I wait a beat as she nods in confirmation.Me: "TD, if I was a bad mommy I wouldn't care that you said that. It hurt my feelings. If I was a bad mommy I wouldn't be combing your hair or helping you get dressed or feeding you breakfast. Would you like it if I said you were a bad daughter?" TD: "Nooo...."Me: (Feeling overwhelmed by sadness and … [Read more...]
She’s Four and Getting Married
I guess I should be happy. She has good taste in er, boys. A few weeks ago a mother to a boy in TD's class informed me that TD was her son's "Lady Love" and that they were "betrothed". "Don't freak out." She said. "We've been reading Robin Hood and that is how they talk and how the book refers to Maid Marian." OK, then.They hold hands going into school. They have playdates and in general, are similar and just genuinely like each others company. It's a match made in preschool heaven when you find someone who eats the same organic snacks and hates loud noises like you do. Right?But TD might be two-timing her man. Today she told me, "I'm marrying Reilly. I'll hold flowers and then we'll hold hands after we're married because that … [Read more...]
The Eldest Child
"Mommy, I fed The Comedian some yogurt so you won't get sick." Relief spreads through my body as I express my gratitude towards my four year-old who has fed her sister breakfast without my even thinking of her doing so. This is something new. Before I can say thank you again, she adds, "And I wiped her face and hands with a napkin, so she is all set."Tears prick my eyes as I tell her how sweet and thoughtful she is and how thankful I am. I could have fed her and yet somewhere between putting a bootie on the dog so, she could go outside with her injured foot and cleaning up TD's breakfast dishes, she has fed her baby sister. I stand amazed. As she quietly slips back downstairs to play with her own toys in her own world, I think about the duties that the eldest child takes on. They acquire … [Read more...]