You guys, I should have been more prepared this time. I feel like I am in a brand new world filled with danger at every turn. I feel like I am walking with wide-eyed fear around every corner of our house, waiting for that scary masked dude to jump out and grab me. What’s even worse is, I should have remembered this was coming…by this, I mean my lovely pre-pubescent 8 going on 9 year old daughter.
Now that it’s here, all the terrible memories have come flying back into my brain to tease me even further. I need to start marking my calendar for every time my first one does the crazy dance and morphs into a new person.
If you don’t know what I am referring to, it’s the time in some girl’s lives where all their sweetness seems to disappear overnight. It’s that time where every decision, every question, every action is met with a brutally forceful scream of anger. It’s the time where the simplest request of them is overwhelmingly terrible and obviously the worst thing that has ever happened. We are talking full body thrown across the room/bed/couch (whatever is most convenient), high pitched, tears, kicks, walls banged, things thrown, high action drama!
When my oldest daughter hit this stage, I often described it as if a demon had possessed her, for lack of other apt descriptions. But, with her, we could at least sit down and talk it out. We would affirm her emotions, and where they were coming from, and had some coping mechanisms. This time around, due to my youngest already having an evasive personality, discussion is an absolute no go. I am at a loss, I just have to sit and watch, cowering behind whatever furniture is convenient until it runs its course. And, as much of a stickler as I am, I stick to whatever she is fighting against.
Causes of such anguish in the last week:
– having to go on vacation in Lake Geneva
– having to go swimming
– getting dressed
– leaving the house
– taking the dog outside
– grabbing me the piece of paper sitting next to her
– taking a bath
– brushing her teeth
– being nice to her sister
– not kicking her sister
– hearing it’s time to eat dinner
– not going to the nail salon
– hearing tv time is over
– having to go to bed
As you can tell, it’s obvious I really am an ogre. Now, I’m no doctor, but I have determined it’s their dependence fighting against too much mommy-ing and declaring itself enough without. My oldest definitely left this stage a different girl, extremely self-reliant and brave, ready to take on the world without me. So, I am hoping that when we find the end of the tunnel, my youngest too has found a new piece of herself, I just hope we all survive.
Until then, you will find me hiding under a blanket with a book and wine!
