Who Taught You?

Last summer, I worked really hard with Abby on how to swing. I showed her how to pump her legs and move with the swing. She tried, but the result always ended with her giving up and me pushing her.

This year, we gave up the idea of ever moving from this house and purchased a swingset for the backyard. So far, it has been the best thing we have ever bought for our family! Right away, Abby began trying out the swings and once again, I had to push her.

Then, her neighbor, Trinity, came over to play.

(Let me sidetrack for a moment. Trinity is the one with the really cool swingset in the background of the picture. The fact that everyone wants to play on ours more than hers goes to show that you do not have to buy the expensive set! Our on sale, with a coupon, metal set works just fine.)

So, after spending time with her friend, Abby suddenly starts swinging on her own. I looked in the backyard and she was out there, just pumping away like she had been doing it for years. I ran out, so excited for her, and expressed my pride in her accomplishment.

Her reaction? She said, "Look Mom! Trinity taught me how to swing!"

Okay. So months of hard work on my part resulted in her learning from five minutes with a friend. So it begins. The time where she starts listening to her friends more than her mom. I have now become the mom that she will actually trust and believe when she herself becomes a mom. I thought I had a few more years of the innocence, but she has figured it out.

I am just not as cool or smart as her friends.