on the prowl

I've had a drought of things I felt like writing about for so long, and suddenly tonight, the floodgates have opened so widely that I'm sitting here pen in hand (figuratively speaking of course) with so many ideas pouring through my poor muddled brain that once again, but for a completely new reason, I am at a loss.

Kids sure make your life ... different. complicated. amazing. perfect. complicated.

I've been struggling to rein in my momma-bear tendencies with respect to E and friends. She's having a few triangular issues with her friends. In both cases, it's an issue of another girl wanting to pal up exlusively with one of E's best friends. Now, having gone through childhood myself once, I know that friends come and go and ebb and flow, especially at this tiny young age, but the idea that someone or someone's parents are selectively excluding my daughter, no matter what the innocent reason? The power of momma bear is certainly an uncontrollable force of nature. I can think I'm mature and adult and reasonable, but if you diss my daughter? I will rip your head off. It's more than a little scary because I could and would do it. And for E's sake, I am remaining in control so far and reaching out to the various "interlopers" rather than ignore the issue or become nasty. But my gut instinct is not exactly one of smiles and handshakes.

Mom, you never told me that one of the more difficult parts of being a parent was to have to relearn maturity all over again. And you know what? We haven't even started middle school around here yet. Run for the hills and protect your heads.

Lest anyone who knows us is worried, E is pretty much fine with everything. She is sometimes maybe slightly upset about XXXX girl who is monopolizing best friend's time or YYYY girl who plays with other best friend all the time but never invites her. But E was blessed with an amazingly strong sense of self-worth (she obviously didn't inherit *that* from me!) and all of this to her is annoying and frustrating but definitely never a reflection of her own worth. She does not suffer from self doubt. Rightly so. In the meantime, her momma has her eye on all involved participants and is trying desperately not to confuse any issues with her own childhood or friends into E's. And she trying not to be sent to prison for ripping off heads.