My daughter, Myself

She doesn't always say the right thing or fit in with the crowd that I thought she would,
Many times I find her to be aggressive and overtly negative with the status quo life we live.

I've been known to get frustrated with her and wonder who in the world she is like, because it's not me.

And then I remember.

I remember the girl who told her father, "If he doesn't like me without make up, then he won't like the real me." I recall Metallica spilling from my headphones and the look of disgust I got from my parents when they read some of my poetry.

Many time when she grumbles under her breath as she heads upstairs after I'm done yelling at her because of her grades or when the dishes weren't done... I can almost say the words coming out of her mouth. I said them 19 years ago to my own parents.



My second daughter is outspoken, an original masterpiece that can't be formed into a mold.
She is an amazing artist, a talented writer and as I found out tonight, tons of fun to walk around shops with.

I am thankful to have been given this time with my daughter Ashlyn, she's a special girl that is already 17 years old and will be out of the house soon. I've only got a short amount of time to teach her the things she needs to learn... Thank goodness she's a fast learner.

Thank goodness we are all different

I fully believe that we are all our worst enemy.

I can cut myself down in front of a mirror faster than any other person. However the second person that can pull me into a funk, when I allow it, is another woman.

I am not sure if we as women realize the damage we do to one another.



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* A look as a girl walks, then we whisper behind our hand, "What is *she* wearing?"
* The raise of a brow when a fellow mother is having issues with their child in the middle of the store
* Comments like, "I don't understand why mother's are so happy for their kids to go back to school, I am heartbroken when my child is away from me."

Today in one of my favorite social media mom's groups a woman put this up and for some reason it got under my skin. It took me most of the day to figure out why, because most of the time I just let them roll off my back.

I finally figured it out.

It has nothing to do with a mother wanting to be "away" from their kids, it's because a mother wants the routine, the schedule to return back to normal. When the holidays are here many of us are thrilled to have those early morning snuggles with our little ones, the french toast, bacon and coffee in front of a frosted window. The Norman Rockwell moments with our families.

When those times wind down and the "real" world slaps us in the face, we need some kind of normal. Our decorations are put away, the house is swept up from pine needles and scented wreaths, there are no little figurines that dance and play holiday music, our life returns to some sort of normal rhythm. It's a welcome blessing for many of us.

I don't know a single mother that wants her children to "go away" to school because she doesn"t love them, nor am I against a mother that wants to be around her children fulltime so she homeschools them and has those Norman Rockwell moments all year long.

I am hopeful that all of those women, mothers, the ones that love their children and themselves can find solace in their groups and within society because we are ALL doing the best we can.