Lessons in Parenting

I'll be the first to admit that I am not one of "those" moms. I drink, cook chili on the weekends (which is why my kid doesn't play soccer), I'm pretty loose around my kiddos and to the horror of so many...I let my child watch TV!! I still think I'm a good mom because first and foremost, my child is loved and she knows it. We do a lot as a family. Her mommy and daddy love each other and she knows it, so she doesn't have to worry about a crappy home life because her parents have a craptastic marriage. We have lots of private time together. We do things a little differently at the Brignon house and so far, none of our kids have shown any type of serial killer like tendencies. Still, I'm far from perfect and the best thing about parenting is that in a lot of ways, it's an "earn as you learn" profession. Case in point, I learned this morning that my child is a freak about being on time. When you all pick yourselves up off the floor at the sheer irony of this, let me know.

Hahaha!!! I'm the most punctually challenged person EVER! I come by it honestly through my aunt. My dad, on the other hand, has successfully conquered this issue and is not afflicted the same way his sister and I seem to be. To make matters worse, I am married to someone who has to re-enter our house at least 3 times before we can leave. 7 pm reservations? We'll be there by 7:30. I am probably the only person I know that can be a block from where I need to be with 10 minutes to spare and still be late. Believe me, it's happened. I did it not too long ago and was oddly proud of my ability. (Hey - we've all got to be good at something!)

So, back to my freakishly strange child who prefers to be on time everywhere we go. I had the best intentions when Lord Brignon left the house at 6 am this morning. I told him to make sure I got up. Instead, I asked him to bring the Juicy of Love and Deliciousness to our room so that we could keep sleeping. We finally woke up at 8 am. Follow that with an email war with a GC over an insurance certificate and shit - it's already 9:30. Paige has swimming lessons in Irving and they begin at 10:45. For those of you unfamiliar with where I live, drive to the middle of nowhere and keep going - you'll finally find my house. It's easily an hour and fifteen minute drive to the Y in Irving. Soo....I tell her to come on (she was already ready, being the punctual person in our home) and we blasted off. I was on the phone a few times and she heard me utter the phrase "running late". Oh my God....she freaked OUT! She told me multiple times that "she's never late." She also informed me that she likes to be on time and if possible, early to her appointments. Yes, she actually said "early to her appointments." Oh Lord...that poor child. She's so screwed.

So, there you have it. You never stop learning about your children and their quirks. And yes, I do consider being on time a "quirk"!!! She's just so funny and she always surprises me in one way or another. Who knew a 6 year old could get worked up over being late? We gave up getting anxious over running late a long time ago, so it's not like she's feeding off of our stress. And any time I mention that I'm running late, I'm usually laughing hysterically. My lateness annoys a lot of people, I know that and I totally get it. It's considered rude and again, I get that. I just live in a world where I am very rarely required to be on time. Late to work? Who cares, I'm the boss :) Late to dinner? So what, most of the time our table isn't even ready...and so on. I do make sure she gets to school on time. I know that can be a huge disruption to the class, so I do my damnedest to get her to school early and so far, I've only taken her late a few times.

I guess my secret is out...I am an imperfect parent and I enjoy the lessons I learn every day being Paige's parent. Maybe if we all relax and realize that none of us really get it, we'll all be a lot happier with happy kids. No one ever gets it right all the time, regardless of how good our intentions might be. We're humans, we have crazy lives and sometimes shit just happens, regardless of our best laid plans!

I hope everyone is having a great day. I'm totally digging this whole Monday off kind of week - it's already Wednesday!!! I'm still trying to swing my Sister on the Fly trip next week. We are still busy around here and I may not be able to make it happen. My trailer is painted, the cushions are already done and I just have a few decorating items to take care of. I'll post some pics of the Cowgirl Cadillac. She looks beautiful with her new paint!

I'll be back tomorrow to spread my own special brand of joy and kindness.

Kelly