I walked into my daughter’s room. That’s when I saw it.Immediately, my blood pressure began to rise.
There, in the doorway of her closet, on my JUST CLEANED carpet, was a hideous spot.
Me: MOLLY! What is that spot on your carpet???!!!!
Molly (without a care in the world): Oh, that? Yea, Lauren and I ate Cocoa Puffs and we kinda spilled the milk.
Me: Wait a minute. Lauren slept over TWO DAYS AGO! TWO DAYS! That spot has been there for TWO DAYS?! Did you think about maybe cleaning it up or maybe telling me so I could? Did ya think about that?! I JUST got the carpets cleaned, but was it your money? Noooo.
Then I went into a highly educational and spirited lecture about how when you leave stains they soak into the carpet fibers and are much more difficult to remove. This is all riveting stuff for a 12-year-old.
Yep, it’s true. I became the bird. Whatever his name is. And I just went cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. But did I mention that I had JUST had my carpets cleaned? For $200 hard-earned bucks. Not that I’m counting.
My perfectionistic tendencies are dying a long, hard, slow painful death.
Later I asked myself, “Was the Cocoa Puffs battle worth fighting? In the big picture, does it really matter that I have some Cocoa Puffs milk embedded into my carpet fibers?”
Right now, Molly is on the edge of the teen years. Already, she’s been bombarded by a host of influences that make me shudder. And pray. A lot.
Every day, it seems like my influence fades a little. But I know it’s still there. Probably more than I think.
And when I insist on nitpicking and winning every little “Cocoa Puffs” battle, I damage our relationship. And relationship IS influence. When I encounter a battle that really counts, I want her to hear me.
Which means this Cuckoo bird needs to stay in her cage.
He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin. Proverbs 13:3
another great message. I think a real strength of your blog is you pick ordinary situations, share them honestly and tied them to a lesson. nicely done!
ReplyDeleteSuch a great reminder. I'm not far behind you and I shutter at all the influences that will be around my daughter in a few years as she changes schools and gets older.
ReplyDeleteBTW--did you get the spot out?
Ha!! My eldest will turn 10 this year and he keeps reminding me that he will be a teenager soon...ugh.
ReplyDeletep.s. I'm grabbing your button!
ReplyDeleteI find myself in this situation with my husband, more than my son (8 months old). Sometimes, I just get so passionate about something and I want to make sure I get my point across. Each day I am learning that less is more and to only fight for the things that really matter to me.
ReplyDeleteHowever, there are days when I just wonder, what he was thinking? ;)
Actually, Camryn, the spot did come out! If you really look, you can see it, but who's doing that??
ReplyDeleteWhich makes me really realize how stupid it is to damage our relationships with our kids over stuff that doesn't even end up being that big of a deal! ;0)
I found you on the Mom Bloggers "Christian Moms" club.
ReplyDeleteSo glad I did.
You are definitely a kindred spirit<3
sarasophia
Why do we do that? I'm so guilty. Or maybe I should say, "I'm so in need of grace. And wisdom."
ReplyDeleteI love knowing that I'm not the only one who fights about unimportant things.