when you show your kid the real...

It has been interesting over here transitioning from a younger kid to an older kid/preteen. We have been learning the ropes as we go and there are all the feels over here. The little, cutsie things are old hat and she just wants to weed out some of the young kid stuff and only do the fun (to her) stuff. It is sad to think some of those fun parenting things are over. However, we now get a break and can just enjoy more time together.



The tooth fairy went to the wayside during Covid because if we were quarantined, how could she get in?! And there went the Easter bunny. THOSE were fine by me. Digging around for an old tooth at night and remembering the money... Trying to explain how a tiny bunny reached our door handle to get in... I am good that this part is over. She was too smart for those tales anyways.

We haven't colored Easter eggs in a couple years. I always offer, but nah. Do you want to do an egg hunt? Nah. We haven't carved a pumpkin in years because she says, EW. Granted, we did paint them two years ago, but that was it. No carving or decorating. 

Santa is gone. That makes wrapping easier! But then there goes sprinkling reindeer food in the yard and leaving out milk and cookies :(. My absolute favorite of all this--- NO MORE ELF!!! No more popping out of bed to move that thing in the middle of the night. No more hearing, "How come so and so's elf does cooler stuff than mine?!" So, there's another back and forth on the fence of growing up. Only one set of wrapping paper! But... no more cutsie pictures, no more Santa lap photos. 

There's just too much to take in! For every relief it's over, I mentally groan that it is indeed over. Now she can move the Elf every time little friends come over. We will eat the cookies and drink the milk before bed. She can pass the reindeer "food" recipe to her little cousin. The spirit will live on. It will just look different. 

My head is relieved, but my heart is torn. We didn't even carol because she didn't want to be embarrassed. Oh, to be a preteen again! In the meantime, I can enjoy the actual moments with her and not wake up panicking that I forgot some key memory she should be having. I don't have to force canned memories and or cheesey photos upon her. We can sip our decaf coffee drinks, drive all night looking for the cool Christmas lights, and then come home to watch girly romantic Christmas movies 😀

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