Last weekend, I was getting dressed to go to a party. I had chosen my shirt but couldn't decide which jeans to wear with it. I tried on both pairs for Aaron and asked which looked better. After he gave me his opinion, Livy came out of her room crying.
"Why do you only ask him things? I'm big enough to know what's pretty!"
I comforted her for a second, assured her that I would love her opinion, and offered to go put the other pants back on so she could compare. But that wasn't good enough. She didn't really care that much about my outfit. She wanted me to value her opinion and acknowledge that she getting so much older.
I thought for a second, and I realized that she was right. She is old enough to know what's pretty. Honestly, her fashion sense might be better than Aaron's. But I was stuck thinking of her as my baby still, not a person who has valuable opinions to share.
So, I explained that I had forgotten for a moment how grown up she was and that I would try not to forget again. And I will try. I don't want to be that mom who can't learn to see her child as an adult. I want to practice seeing all her maturity now and changing my perception of her as she actually changes, so that when she really is all grown up, I see her adult self clearly.
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