My oldest daughter, the very undemanding child who knows how to entertain herself, asks me this at least a dozen times a day. The problem is, I don't say "yes" very often. Not because I don't want to (although, if I'm being honest, sometimes I don't want to), it just seems like there is never time. When I'm not doing homework, there's all those annoying chores.
And then there's that thing where you go to bed and close your eyes and lie very still. What is it called? Sleep?
Ugh. I never wanted to be one of those moms.
I fear she is suffering from the proverbial "Middle Child Syndrome" and I am suffering from "Chronic Maternal Guilt".
Not just guilt, but I truly want to be with her and do fun "girl" things.
So I planned a night for us, no boys or toddlers allowed. No interruptions. No "can you wait just one minute?" Just she and I. Full, undivided attention. We called it "Mommy/Daughter Date". 
I secretly bought tickets to Disney on Ice's "Princess Wishes" and - hard as it was - kept it a secret.
Although Hubby let the cat out of the bag the day of, it all still worked out nicely.
She picked the restaurant for dinner, which was, lucky for me, Carrabba's, and not McDonald's.
Look at her. Is she not the sweetest thing ever?!
And just let me say (Kyle, you would be proud) the staff was so very friendly and attentive to her. They treated her like a young lady and made us feel very special. We felt as though we were the most important people in the room.
After dinner we headed to the show. She requested Van Halen and we listened to "Jump", bopping around the van and singing at the top of our lungs. Then we played a rhyming game, at which, incidentally, she is very good. She rhymed "canteloupe" and "antelope".
Am I being ridiculously biased, or is that a great rhyme?
And then we arrived (after 45 minutes of looking for a parking spot). She literally had me by the hand, dragging me as fast as her legs could go.
We were NOT disappointed. It was a spectacular show. At one point, the dragon from Sleeping Beauty actually breathed fire onto the ice and THE ICE WAS ON FIRE.
Awesome.
But the best part? My little girl was constantly hugging me and holding my hand. If I took my arm from around her to take a picture, she quickly put it back. I didn't have to stop to change a diaper or unload the dishwasher. I didn't have to think about anything but her.
On the way home I told her how much fun I had just being with her. And she said, "We should do this more often."
I couldn't agree more.
13 comments:
That sounds like such a great evening. I like to do this with my daughter as well although we haven't done it in a very long time. Thanks for the reminder!
What a great memory for the two of you. I have some plans to make :)
That is so sweet!! I should really do something like that too. You are a great momma!
What a fantastic day of closeness--I'm sure you'll both cherish the memories forever! I so understand the guilties over requests to play...you mean, scrubbing the floor with a washcloth alongside Mommy isn't fun enough for you?! Guess we could break out the Lego's :)
How cool! I used to love stuff like that with my mom. I still do!! You guys are too cute for words.
How beautiful you both are!
That outing just boosted your Supermom status by 567 points, off the charts.
Great idea. My son and I have our afternoons together but I think a "Mommy and Me" night might be in order!
I know where you are with the feeling distracted even though you would like to play with her more. I have the same thing going on here. The difference between us is that you did something about it! Good for you! Thinking about what I can do now...
Oh that makes my eyes tear up! i've got to do this with my daughters. what a wonderful night!
ps that is a good rhyme.
How beautiful, I'm sure she will remember it forever. I have a hard time getting alone time with my kids, I have a lot to do and a lot of kids. We would all benefit if I could fit in a day once in a while though.
Since we dont know what tomorrow might bring it is nice to just put of the house work after all it will be there tomorrow whether we are or not. :) Way to go!
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Oh wow! I wanna do that with my daughter!! So much fun! I get so tied up with all the stuff going on, and chasing after her brother, who is, after all, only two. I need to set aside some girl time, and soon!! Thanks for the motivation! I really like your blog.
How sweet. I need to say Yes to my kids requests more often too. Thanks for the reminder.
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