“Yes my dad did that too when I was little” My daughter said to the 8 and 10 year old girls that she babysits a fair bit, when they were talking about something funny their dad does.
“Wait. You have a dad?”
Uhh. Yes. I have a dad. Big smile. Was this going to be the birds and bees discussion?
How come you don’t live with him?
My parents are divorced and I live with my mom. This is often but not always the case.
What if you hate your mom?
Well I don’t so it makes it easy.
Where is your dad? How often do you see him?
It’s complicated.
They lean in with big eyes
That’s okay you can tell us anything
Well it’s a long story
That’s okay, we have lots of time !
Why don’t we just leave it at – it’s complicated, okay?
I can’t explain what loved most about this exchange- my daughter dying to tell me it at dinner with perfect imitation of the little girls curiousity and hope for a big story, the way she handled it with ease and comfort or the fact that she said ” Mom you should blog about it. It was too good a moment not to share.”
There was always something a little bit cool about coming from the family that was different. What makes it cool is that you have a Mom that doubles as a Dad. Complicated yes, but very, very cool!
Me too, Christina. If I can say it- I hear myself in them. You too?
Oh yes, this is a very familiar routine in my house, with dad gone since 2005 and 3 girls. I admire so very much the way my daughters’ handle these situations with grace and dignity.
Yup. Complicated indeed. Right there with ya, sistas!
I knew you would, Sara.
It’s complicated…oh yes.
I can picture this convo!