Howdy - Part 2

So yesterday I told you about the place...it really was a nice place.

I'd like to get into a little bit of revelations that hit me this weekend.

You never know how old your child is until you see them through other's eyes...or observe them with their friends.   That could be a good or bad thing. 

I liked what I saw of Buggy this weekend.

She's goofy.  She's laid back.  She's loud (like her momma).  She's quiet.  She's a great blend of what I think of as a well rounded girl.

Funny thing as I was talking to another mom is I realized.  I am all those things too.  Maybe I was that way back then too, but I feel more strongly about it now.

This mom obsesses (her own words) about how her daughter is fitting in, how others treat her daughter and on and on.  She asked my opinion on the matter.  Did I see the other girls leaving her out or being mean to her?

Honestly, no.  I didn't see any abnormal girl interaction.  In fact one thing that I noticed with our group of girls is how UNCLICKY it seemed.  There were no consistent clicks between any of them.  You could tell which of the girls were a little closer, but they all seemed to hang out with each other very well.  It wasn't uncommon to see different girls grouping up throughout the trip.

I started to watch Buggy.  She doesn't come home and talk about any of her friends at school.  Sometimes I wonder if she has friends at all.  What I saw this weekend is that, she does indeed have friends.  However, she doesn't obsess over these friends.  She fit in nicely with everyone, being herself and having a good time.  She's so relaxed and not overly concerned with other people.

I told the other mom, "I am sure your daughter is fine...all kids need to find their niche and she is doing just fine.  I don't see any girls being mean to her or excluding her.  In fact, I love this group of girls, they all seem so friendly to each other and not too clicky."

She went on continuing to obsess and then even mentioned that she feels the same way with the other moms.  Source of her obsession with her own daughter.  Her own insecurities.  She's putting them onto her daughter.

I feel like I'm being looked at judgementally by some of the other moms, but you know what?  I don't care.  There was a saying that has stuck with me since I first heard it and it goes something like this...

When you are judging others you're really judging yourself.

Right?  Any time I find myself judging another it is usually due to my own insecurity.  It really helps me put into prospective my thoughts and quickly squash my judgements.

I am in a really good place with me as a person.  I like the person I see in Buggy.  I loved this part of the weekend.  Seeing her in action, so to speak.  I also liked that she was not shy about loving on her Mommy.  She was not disgusted by her Mom's actions.

There was one point that I was taken aback.  I sat down to eat.  She was on the other side of the table.  She leaned over to her friend and said, "Oh no, here comes my Mom and the embarrassment."

I know she saw the look on my face, she quickly said (out loud), "I'm just teasing Mom.  You don't embarrass me all the time."

I smiled.

I know.  Sometimes I do things to purposely embarrass her, I feel it my right as a Mom.  No?  As long as I'm not embarrassing her all the time, I'm good with that.

She did later apologize again.  I told her it was OK, she was there to enjoy her friends and me, she could do both and feel no guilt about it.  So she did.  So did I.



Now, don't get this too twisted.  There is ONE of her friends that we don't see often.  When Buggy is with THIS particular girl I do not like the person I see.  Next year these two will be at the same school.  My hope is that Buggy will gradually venture away from this particular girl.  *fingers crossed*  I chalk it up to a part of growing up.  My mom didn't like all of my friends or how I acted around those friends.  So turn around is fair play I guess. :)

Shew.  This was a long post.  Lets get to the pictures.  Shall we?


My Buggy girl...growing up.


Did I tell you about her donating 10 inches of her hair for locks for love?  She did.  Two weeks ago.  I love her hair like this.


Waiting and watching the horses come in for breakfast.  I love how the light is shining on her beautiful face.


Getting ready to ride a horse for the first time ever.  Bike helmet included. :)


She was so happy to be on that horse...she is NOT happy that I cut off the horses head in the picture.  Noted, but my focus was on HER face, not the horses.


Love her.


Maybe I'm partial...but this might be one of my favorites of the 300 pictures I took. :)  Make that 299, because obviously I didn't take this picture.