Sweet, Sweet Lydia Turns Five

Lydia, now 5, holding her special Strawberry Pillow Mommy made just for her!

When my oldest daughter Michaela turned 5, I remember I started having different expectations of her. I mean, she wasn't a baby anymore. She was in kindergarten. So why couldn't she help me a bit? Was it too much to ask that she do the dishes and fold her own laundry? Ok, it wasn't that extreme, but I did treat her differently. I didn't follow her to the bathroom anymore to help her wash her hands, and I started to ask her to dress herself. But it was too much. I think it added to her stress level and one day she broke down. "It's like when I turned five, you just started expecting me to be different!" She actually said this. It broke my heart. For so long, it was just me and Michaela. She was like my little friend I could take places and she was always willing, with a big smile on her face and a big spring in her step, she always wanted to know: "Where are we going next!?" But a five year old is still a five year old and you are still the parent. You really aren't the friend. You are the mentor. I learned this.

It's different now. I am no longer a single mother. I have help. I have more kids. And I have more experience. Except, I have no time so I better make better choices. So when Lydia, my middle girl, turned five, I swore I would do it differently. But the secret truth is, I am expecting my girls to grow up a bit and help out. Surely they can at least clean up after themselves! It's my job to help them do this for themselves. That's what parenthood is all about. We are the catalysts to help them move themselves along. And the learning part is a process. It's day by day. I learn from them as much as they learn from me. So let's see where I am when Nora turns five in two years. Hopefully, I'll be a pro. By then, I better be better at something! :)

Daddy and Caitlin, Lydia's "fairy Godmother"

Sweet, Sweet Lydia needs a Sweet Pillow.

Pillow Detail.

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