Like Mother...Like Daughter???

I have one daughter, Heather, and she's sixteen. I don't have gray hair yet, but I'm sure I will before she's seventeen if things continue the way they have lately!




We've always been told she looks like me, which I think she has always hated. Fortunately for her, I think she looks much better than I do, or ever did for that matter. Someone even once asked if we were sisters. Sometimes I think she likes that, but not lately. Lately she doesn't like her mom very much. I'm told that's a good thing, very normal, and that I will get a lot smarter in a few years. Hmmm....it's going to be a long few years I'm afraid.




Although she is in trouble with me right now, there are still so many things for which I can be proud. She's a very talented young lady, both in dance and in band. I'm very proud of many of her accomplishments.




When she is misbehaving she loves to tell me "our children are our truest reflections." Where does she get this stuff??? Although in some ways I wish she were more like me, there are also differences I celebrate.





I was always very shy and introverted. Heather has always been much less shy and much more outgoing than I ever was. Whereas I was always likely to say what I thought someone wanted to hear...Heather's never been afraid to speak her mind. I've always admired that about her. Getting up in front of people always has terrified me (and still does!!!). Not Heather. She's danced on stages in front of crowds since she was six years old. I was more nervous for her every single time. Before each performance, I always asked "are you nervous?" I always got the same response....this look that said "are you kidding?" and she'd say, "No, I'm not nervous." And she'd go dance before the judges like she was born to do it. She never ceased to amaze me.






I have always been squeemish around creepy, crawly things...not Heather. She has always loved catching worms, lizards, frogs, etc. Ick! Thankfully she knew not to bring them to me! The only thing I had to make sure her pockets were empty of were rocks. She was always gathering rocks and putting them in her pockets, in her backpack or wherever else she could find to stash them. There is still a small stack of rocks on the back porch that she moved to Texas from Missouri. She's much more like my sister Regina as far as the creepy/crawlies go....and she gets the rock collecting from my mom!





Although there are some similarities...I'm seeing more and more differences in us as time goes by. I'm thankful for that in many ways. In other ways it terrifies me because I don't know the best way to reach her sometimes. Because what may have worked for me....won't necessarily work for her. When things are trying, my friends will say, "at least you only have to go through this once!" I smile and say, "yeah....but look at it this way....I have only one chance to screw it up, or do it right." Heather for your sake, I hope I'm not screwing it up! I love you, even when things are this rocky! Hang in there and we'll get through this together.

Me, at 8 months. Heather at 3 months.

Heather and me, spring 2001 (backstage before a dance recital)

Heather and me this summer.