If you follow me on facebook, you probably saw that photo yesterday.  Elle was home from school and locked in the office for a long time on the computer.  I thought she was working on schoolwork that she was missing while home playing hooky. I was such a proud mother.

Then, about an hour and a half later, she came out of the office and gave me a huge hug. And then began talking about a million miles per hour.

I found your blog, mom.  And it’s AMAZING.  I’m so glad you’re going to start writing again.  You are soooo good at it.  But wow, you really swear a lot.  I mean, A LOT.  It’s okay though because it kind of makes it so much funnier.  But wow. You swear a lot.  I mean. A. lot.

I had a moment of sheer panic. How on earth was I going to explain and justify and try to re-hide this from her? HOW DID SHE EVEN FIND IT? Ohhhh…the Facebook.  Damn that Facebook.  This is exactly why I have never accepted any friend requests from my friends’ kids.

That picture up there is the face she made when I asked her how she felt when she discovered the blog. Hahaha. She is hilarious.  The nice thing about having an incredibly mature tween child, is that you can mostly just be you, and they can be them, and life just works.  If she sees a blog post that makes me a little more human and flawed and easier to relate to, I’m okay with that. I may have to limit her exposure to topics that are too mature for her or more embarrassing than either of us wants to live through, but so be it.

I started writing when Elle was three.  Part of that was so I could leave something of myself behind for my kids after I’m gone- a way for them to know their mom forever, and witness my struggles and successes firsthand.  I don’t lie to my kids and I answer all of their questions as honestly and candidly as they are mature enough to handle.  I’d say very little about me will surprise them, especially Elle, at this point.  That’s not to say I’m going to give her unlimited access to this blog.  Not yet, anyway.  Jimmie and I are smack dab in the middle of a 30 days of sex challenge and I doubt she’s going to want to hear anything about how it’s changing our marriage. After thirteen years, sometimes you have to set alarms and reminders, folks. It’s a sad, sad truth. 😉