8/21/15

parenting pays off

I'm not going to pretend my feelings weren't hurt that Sydney would rather text than talk to me.  Enough of you commented on that to let me know that I'm not the only one that ever felt that way. 

Or worse...

But, it all paid off last night when she was sick. 

I saw it.  I jumped on an unprofessional diagnosis and started treating symptoms.  And, a little while later, after she'd had something to eat and was starting to get hydrated again, she was all over me (except when I was washing dishes, but that's okay).  She complimented how much I know and gave me full credit for her feeling better. 

That's the payoff.  That's when all the other crap stops being important.  And, I've learned to stop and enjoy those times.  Because I'm going to need all the good memories I can muster when school starts and homework is late and she's racking up tardies and whining about having to go to work.  I'm gonna need last night's memories so bad.  And, they will be there.  And, I can put myself back in that place and smile.  And mete out consequences. 

Because the ultimate goal is to raise somebody that will add something, small or large, to the human experience. 

I'm working on the July feathered star calendar block; the one that will commemorate our wedding.  So, it needs to be special.  And, I accidentally used a striped fabric as the background.  And, I've spent about as much time picking things apart and putting them back together as anything else.  I'm doing a lot of "selective cutting", otherwise known as fussy-cutting, to get the stripes to run in the right direction.  So, there's nothing really to show yet except some little pieces that don't make sense on their own.  But, they will by the end of the weekend.  (insert hope here) 

The quilt shop I wanted to go into in Cleveland was closed on my only free day, so I don't have the August fabrics yet.  And, the month is nearly over, so I need to get on that.  But, as things go, that seems so unimportant.  After all, I made the rule that the fabric needed to be bought in the month.  I can break it just as easy.

Being flexible is fun!

Everybody have a great Friday!  Lane

2 comments:

Barb H said...

I hope that as Sydney grows older, there will be more and more of these wonderful moments. By the time my youngest was 22, she'd resumed speaking to me in a kindly way and now we're fine. Stay optimistic!

lw said...

You're in the hardest years now; remember what your life was like when you were Sydney's age? How intense everything felt? You're so right to revel in the good moments and cling to them.

Glad I'm not the only one who makes rules and then breaks them.