She's Growing...

UP! Lila is maturing every minute right before my eyes! A fact that both thrills and saddens me at the exact same time!

Lila is turning 10 years old in a few days. She has been begging to have her ears pierced for roughly 4 years. We've held her off to this point... not because of some moral standard or belief that we hold... not because we think that girls that get their ears pierced at a younger age are somehow "trashy"... simply because Lila... ummm... how do I put this nicely... uhhhh... Lila is messy. Yes. Messy... we'll go with that. Despite her angelic appearance and unmatched beauty, Miss Lila is more apt to find a mud puddle and start rolling around in it than she is to brush her teeth without being prodded. I'm serious. Its not that she enjoys being filthy (or maybe it is)... its just that she's got better things to do with her time than wash her face. Lila is the girl that finishes her breakfast at the counter... grabs her backpack and heads out the door full tilt... without noticing or caring about the immense glob of oatmeal hanging from her chin. Uh huh. I'm serious. Don't get me wrong... I actually LOVE this aspect of her! I mean really... there ARE more important things to do than wipe oatmeal off your chin... who cares right? You can just eat it later. Apparently she did NOT inherit the gene from me that says, "Everyone is looking at you... pointing... and laughing b/c your shirt is wrinkly.". While this is charming and endearing in my Lila... it can also be annoying. I mean seriously... do I REALLY have to tell you that wiping your butt isn't optional? Seriously? Ugh.

Anywho. Lila has proven over the last couple of years that our requests for her to wash her hair, brush her teeth, wipe her butt... have not fallen on deaf ears. As a result, we agreed that it was time, on the advent of her 10th birthday, for her to enter the world of the "big girl", and have her ears pierced. We hustled over to the mall and the brightly lit, glowing neon paradise of girly bobbles and chotchkeys called Claire's. I swear to GOD... I could feel the testosterone draining from my body every second I spent in that place. I wanted to take her to the local piercing shop, High Priestess Piercing, but as it turns out... its slightly more expensive, like 3 times as much! But dangit! It would have really been cool to have the huge dude with metal ALL over his face and body covered in elaborate art, pierce my daughter's ears. This as opposed to the perky 21 year old who was obviously feeling the previous night's debauchery. So... Lila stepped up... closed her eyes... and got it done! You could see the pride and excitement in her eyes as she entered what she marked as a new stage in her life... and I couldn't have been more proud. Her friend Stella was there for the ride and was a great comfort and support... friends are important... they really are.

Here's what all this made me reflect on: Its a common thing to hear from parents. "Where has the time gone?" We look at our sons and daughters one moment as tiny little precious babies... and the next... they're grown up. We talk about how BUSY we are! Our busy lives... and the constant challenge of balancing daily life with simply paying attention to what's going on

around you... the important things. The problem is... you can't just stop ALL the time... there really are important things to do... things that have to get done... things that make us feel better about ourselves as people, parents, partners, friends. So then we start talking about balance. How do we balance all those things? You know what? Give me a freakin break ok?! We do our best at any given moment right? Sometimes we make poor choices... but others? Other times... we hit it out of the f'ing park! Right? Am I right? Its a pendulum people... it swings big to one side at one time... and then just as big to the other. Sometimes it swings small... sometimes not at all. My point is... if you're truly trying... and you're leading with your heart... people, your kids, your friends, your family, your partner... they'll see that... and they'll love you for it... and damnit! Sometimes that is just good enough! Perfection is an elusive sonofabitch.

Hope you're all happy, healthy, and whole. Thank you for taking the time to read.

Breathe...

Proper selection of which stud was key!

Nervous... but ready!

Here comes the stick! Stella is holding her hand for support! SO cute!

THERE! All done... BEAUTIFUL! (thank you Stella for the crossed eyes!)