I gave her my heart and she rolled her eyes and walked off…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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There have been times when I gave it my all to make my daughter happy. Maybe she was fighting with a friend or overwhelmed by school. She wasn’t happy for some reason, and I was determined to change that.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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So I went into Martha Stuart mode. I made her a snack, plated it like a professional chef, and proudly took it up to her room.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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In my mind, as soon as she saw that perfectly plated snack, she was going to smile, thank me profusely, and, wait for it…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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say “I love you, Mom”⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Well, that was the story that was playing in my head anyway.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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What really went down?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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A quick glance at the food and that was it. No smile. Not much acknowledgement. And definitely no “I love you”.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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And that was ok. She needed her space and a plated snack was not going to make her troubles go away.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Would I do it again? Absolutely. And I did it again and again over the years. It turns out, the snack wasn’t about making her happy or getting a “thank you” or “I love you” out of it…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Instead, it was about ME saying “I love you” to her. Nothing was needed in return.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#momlove #parentinghacks #teenlife #momlife #parenting101 #momwise #teenwise #parentcoach #teencoach #parenting #parentingteens #marthastuart
YOU GOT THIS!
With Heart,
Coach Sheri
TeenWiseSeattle.com
P.S. If your daughter doesn’t open up to you right away, be patient. Let her know that you are there if she wants to talk. Some kids need to process the difficult days on their own.
