Every stage of life seems to have milestones and incredible moments.
“I can’t believe I’m graduating from college!” or “I can’t believe I’m getting married” or “I can’t believe I’m having a baby!” Even when taken (“I can’t believe I got tickets to Taylor Swift!”), there always seems to be a “pinch me” moment.
Lucky for me, there have been many “unbelievable…” moments in my life, but when my oldest daughter turned 10 in November, I was in for a big shock. I didn’t fully grasp the fact that I have a “double digit” daughter. To make matters worse, she finally proved herself responsible enough to get her own ear pierced. How and when did my baby grow?!
When you become a parent, you will inevitably be told, “Don’t blink, you’ll grow up before you know it.” It’s also inevitable that new parents will scoff at the saying. Time passes very slowly, especially with small children. Until I became a parent, I didn’t understand the saying “the days are long and the years are short”.
As November passed and Dylan turned 10 and the time to get his ears pierced neared, I began to think of the girl who made me a mother in the first place.
The memory of her first birthday is so vivid in my head. I designed centerpieces and embellishments. I had a friend make a custom Elmo cake. I rented a place for a party and invited everyone I knew. I couldn’t wait to celebrate my little girl and my little part was celebrating herself too .
During that year, I had successfully taken care of my baby, returned to work, lost most of my baby weight, and was waiting to move to a bigger house to accommodate my growing family. I still can’t believe I kept another creature (other than a dog) alive for a year.
Now that little baby is 10 years old, she wasn’t afraid to get her ears pierced. My mom came with us from Louisville with some friends from Dylan. Of course, as luck would have it, the girl in front of us completely lost her cool in the process, and we all smiled awkwardly in the lobby, trying to ignore the bloody, murderous screams coming from Pierce Booth.
A bit of a dramatic kid (how do you know that?!) I was afraid that when Dylan’s turn came, he would melt in a puddle of tears. Luckily, the traumatic episode in front of us didn’t overwhelm her, and she walked into her room and took a deep breath. The amazingly professional staff at Queen City Piercing (#notanad) were quick and everything was done before I knew it.
I stopped and saw a 10-year-old girl with opal studs in her ears. It seemed silly that I was in tears when Dylan himself didn’t even flinch, but it was all too much to handle. Wasn’t it yesterday that you were born, that you took your first steps, that you said your first words?
Dylan sees me getting emotional, sees her new 10-year-old status and street credibility with her ear piercings, especially in front of her friends. did not.
“Mom, are you serious? Put it all together!” she said, ruffled her hair and rolled her eyes.
Hold on, let me get this straight. Not just a 10 year old with pierced ears, but a 10 year old girl with pierced ears who can serve with a serious attitude?!
My mother laughed, patted me on the back, and said, “Wait a minute.” “If she’s like you, this is just the beginning. Good luck.”
It’s really unbelievable now.
