Lesson #4 Shoulds

Dear Baby,
You took seven consecutive steps today. It started with three a few weeks ago and now it is seven. I believe that, within the week, you will be off and running. I am so proud of you, baby. I love watching you grow and seeing what new thing you will do and learn. Your latest thing is to clap your hands together and then lift them over your head as if to say "all done." It is truly adorable.

So, as you take your first steps, it hits me that this first year really has flown by. And I now feel compelled to really start to focus on what I want to teach you during your life. Because I should slowly start introducing these things now. This has led me to start to form a skeleton parenting syllabus. Sure, this blog acts as a basic lesson guide from things quirky to things important. But I want to focus my teachings as your momma. And I have started to put together a "should" list. These are things you really should learn how to do. And things that, admittedly, I can't do...yet. But I am determined to learn and teach you.

1. How to ride a bike. I know. This is awful. I did learn when I was about seven. My dad taught me. But later that day, as I was high off of finally mastering my pink banana seat, a car nearly ran me off the road. I flew off of the bike and got many scrapes and scuffs. But the real damage was done to my psyche. And, since then, every time I try to get on a bike I get all sweaty and panicky. I should have gotten right back on. But I didn't. Recently, your wonderful father found my old pink banana seat bike from out of your grandparents garage. He took it to the bike shop and got it polished up and put training wheels on it for me. And I am determined to ride again. So we can ride together. I figure I've got six more years to practice.

2. Drive a stick shift. Now this might just be moot as we'll all be traveling around in our hover crafts by the time you are sixteen. But it is something I never learned to do--even though my high school boyfriend, Buzz (yes, that was really his name), tried to teach me one summer. We went to the stadium parking at the Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego...now it's like the Qualcom Stadium and by the time you know where it is it will probably be the McDonald's Stadium -- but I tried and gave up. And, really, I didn't try that hard. I just wanted to be smootching that summer not learning how to drive a stick shift. I regret that I didn't learn. But don't regret the smootching.

3. How to change a tire. I think I could do this in a pinch. But the truth is, I don't know. This is something that I am going to master so I can show you how to do it. As your momma, I want to raise a girl who is self sufficient and not a damsel in distress. I want you to know that you don't have to wait for your prince to come. You can do thinks all by yourself!

So begins my parenting syllabus. It will also be filled with things I can already do well, don't worry. But those are lessons for another day.

Congratulations of your first steps, baby. I look forward to all of your firsts and am excited that we will take some of those firsts together.

Love, Mom