Wow—what a week! If you follow me on Twitter, you already know about the car accident I was involved in on Wednesday. Everyone is fine. It’s just my car that’s banged up.
What you don’t know (because I haven’t had the guts to share it yet) is about the near accident earlier that day. The one where my daughter ran out into the street in front of a car. Thank God the driver was paying attention!
Because I sure wasn’t.
I buckled her into the car, unloaded my grocery cart and ran it across the parking lane to the corral. And, turned around to see my daughter running towards me as a car stopped literally 3 feet in front of her. The terror I felt as I watched the scene unfold cannot even be described.
I ran to her, in tears, thanked the driver and hugged her all the way back to the car. Even as I lectured her on parking lot safety, staying where she’s put and being a good listener. All of which she must know & remember but none of which excuses the fact that I let it happen.
I know she doesn’t sit still. I know she’s not a good listener. I know she’s not like my other kids. Yet, I so often parent her the way I have parented for 12 years. It doesn’t work, and I know that! She’s too high energy. Too independent. Too much like me. (Thanks for that curse, Mom!)
I have to keep her active, or she gets bored and destroys something. I have to provide boundaries, while creating opportunities for her to express herself, or she decides to do whatever she wants.
Because she pretty much can.
Lorelai is deceptively adorable. She looks sweet & innocent, and right after she makes you completely crazy, she’ll say the cutest things. The kid is hilarious & gorgeous, and at age 4, she’s already learned to work it!
I have to learn to learn to look past the cute & be a better mom. I have to learn to parent Lorelai, not the 3rd Sokol girl, or, we’ll honestly never make it to her 18th birthday.
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Heather Sokol is the married mother of 3 beautiful, active girls. They have created in her a Montessori Mom, Scout Mom, Allergy Mom & avid coupon clipper. Is that miscellaneous enough for you? She shares her deals & tips at Inexpensively.com and reports progress on learning to be a grownup at JustHeather.com.
Aww, Heather, I’m sorry. That terror is something only a parent can truly understand. I think we’ve all had those moments with one of our children. I’m just glad that the other driver was watching and I know you’ll never let that type of situation happen again. ((hugs))
Oh hugs to you both!! You know, I do that all the time- the buckle up of the kids and then run the cart to the corral– it has never occurred to me that they might unbuckle ( although it could easily happen)….I always try to park next to the carts anyway, now here’s the motivation to keep looking for those spots!
Heather, thank you for the honesty with this post. You handled the situation exceptionally, which shows that it was not all a Mom Fail. There was a teaching moment, not only for your daughter but also for you. And you both got it!
Celebrate the good!
Sara from Saving For Someday
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