The Rose in My Garden

Today was Olivia's first "real" tea party. It was definitely one of the sweetest, cutest things I have ever seen. She was invited to the home of a precious little girl from her preschool class, and let me tell ya, her mom knows how to throw a tea party!

Not one detail was missed and I think I know what kind of party Miss Olivia is going to want for her next birthday.  Although... she also says she wants a SpongeBob party. A SpongeBob tea party, perhaps? Seems quite the paradox, does it not? Well, if you know my daughter, you know that SHE can be quite the paradox, and that a SpongeBob tea party would fit her perfectly. :) Case in point: the sweet, sensitive, princess-obsessed little girl that is my daughter, is also an extremely active, talkative, extroverted, spirited little firecracker. Anyone who knows her, knows this. So why, you ask, was I surprised when she walked into a very subdued girly tea party today... and within minutes, the guests (and moms) saw my sweet little girl's bum not once, but twice? Naked bum. On purpose. Yes, folks, my daughter mooned all party guests and chaperones. Two times. And laughed the whole time she was doing it. The moms laughed, and one said, "Well, she sure wants to liven up this party!" but Lord knows what they were really thinking! HA! Oh well. I can't waste too much time worrying about it, 'cause THAT'S MY GIRL! For better or worse, take her or leave her, that's my baby. And whew- let me tell ya, she's a freakin' whirlwind of emotion and energy. Sometimes it's silly and fun... sometimes... not so much. And it's the not-so-much part that scares me, especially when I think about the teenage years to come (Dear Lord, give me strength). But I love that little girl more than life itself, and I keep the epilogue to "Raising Your Spirited Child" by Mary Sheedy Kurcinka very close-by... because on the tough days, it is very much the reminder that I need.

An excerpt from aforementioned epilogue, The Rose in My Garden:

"Love your spirited child for who she is.  Let her make you laugh.  Let her share with you how she sees, hears, and experiences the things around her. Allow her to enrich your life. Because she is more, she will make you more.

Spirited kids are like the roses in my garden. They need more attention.  Throw a little water on the other flowers and they grow.  Not the rose- it needs special treatment. It has to be pruned and guided in its growth.

Other flowers can be plucked, pulled, and mauled by a preschooler and still last for weeks on your dining room table. If you treat a rose roughly, it will wilt in your hands or stab you, make you bleed.

But there is not another flower like the rose in my garden. Its rich perfume fragrance titillates my senses. Its satin soft petals tickle my fingers. Its blooms are so vibrant they stir my soul. Spirited kids are like roses- they need special care. And sometimes you have to get past the thorns to truly enjoy their beauty."