Her Kryptonite

Thanks to everyone who gave their encouragement about Anna getting her ears pierced, it went much better than expected. Let me just say that I spent way more time in Claire's Boutique this weekend than I cared to. We had a return due to malfunction the next day, than another return because of a broken necklace on Sunday. Claire's is her new obsession, since she has so many more jewelry options. It's a good thing that it isn't in walking distance, because it has become her new dollar store. She can't resist the dollar store, and can always find an excuse to go in. The problem is that she can't earn enough allowance to support her new habit, and she isn't due for her review and raise for awhile. :O)

I fully expected my 5 year old to change her mind at the last minute. Nope, she hopped right up into the chair and waited in a slightly pale and clammy patience. As we waited for the sales person to get everything ready- which, by the way is a bit like waiting to have surgery done while the OR nurse examines every single sharp and pointy instruments right in front of you, or maybe watching the ax man sharpen his blade- and judging from her particular shade of greenness, I waited for the moment in which she would bolt.

Again, I misjudged my girl. She sat there like a champ, with a gun pointed at each ear lobe... Two simultaneous clicks, a flinch, an whimper, and that was it. There was a second where she considered crying, but decided it didn't mesh with her new big girl status. We topped the whole experience off with a shiny new pair of dragonfly earrings, with a CZ accent and a tiny, movable, beaded tail.

My daughter is such an intricately woven person, I can barely predict the outcome to most situations anymore. She tends to run hot or cold, and there is no in between (or convincing her otherwise). I told John that I don't remember meeting a more stubborn person other than his dearly departed dad. Once my FIL set his mind to something, he could not be shaken, moved, tackled... They both remind me of Penny Wharvey McGill in the Movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?, when she says, "I've spoken my piece and counted to three", then proceeds to walk away with her head held high and her nose in the air. They are/were both the kind of persons that can be very loving one minute, then frustrating in a "fists and jaw clenched" sort of way the next.

So, when she told me that she never wanted to have her ears pierced at the age of 4, I believed her. I had thought that eventually there might be a remote chance that she would change her mind, but not likely. All I can say is there is nothing more motivating than impressing your 5 year old friends. She told me that she wanted to be part of the cool girl club. I am thinking that we are going to have more talks about peer pressure, and eventually talks about how self mutilation shouldn't be necessary to fit in.

On another note, Anna came down with a cold the very next day. It turns out that Super Girl is afraid of cough medicine because, you see.... it tastes bad. Saturday morning she all but coughed up a lung, and despite feeling like she was going to throw up every time she coughed, she refused for about an hour to take it. This is where the jaw and fist clenching come in. Oh, she finally took the dang medicine, but not without saturating the room with her unwavering drama. 45 minutes later we hear a cheerful, "I feel better!"- shortly followed by John and I biting the backs of our dining room chairs to keep from stringing her up by her thumbs. ;O)

No matter, this morning it was back to square one. Coughing, tears, pointing at a teaspoon of medicine in horror as if it were a gallon of vile purple-ness, more coughing, threats (by us, of course), drama, drama, tears, yelling by us to "take it, or don't and suffer at school all day, but I don't want to hear later how you felt horrible all day!", and "this is the same, exact medicine you took yesterday... and amazing, yesterday you miraculously felt better after!", more tears, then gulp-sip-gulp, the sound of a small plastic cup hitting stainless steel, and finally "Mommy, I love you, can I have a hug?".

*Cue heavy sighs, internal growls of frustration, the usual clenching, and consumption of large quantities of coffee*
I am so glad that Emma tends to sleep in and I get at least an hour of quiet, coffee time.

Every super hero has his or her weakness. Saying what I am about to say in no way diminishes the fact that I love my daughter with every fiber of my being, and I would gladly give my life in place of hers...

What doesn't kill us makes us stronger. Or just whiny and really annoying.