It has been too long. My children have been home for summer vacation and I have felt trapped, convinced that I couldn't write with them in my space. True or not, I dont know, because I didn't try. Summer vacation was supposed to end today, but school was postponed due to power outages. Mother Nature took the name Irene.

My impulse to post was spurred by a burst of understanding that will probably underwhelm you. I know and knew that I am very critical of my daughter. She constantly surprises and confuses me. She wants things that I have never wanted, chooses things that I would never choose. I often find myself arguing with her about her choices, likes and dislikes. Is she a "bad girl"? Does she want things that I consider immoral or risky? Oh, no. Nothing like that. She just chooses things that I would never have chosen in a million years!! My son also likes things that don't interest me. So, why am I so bothered by my daughter?

It seems to me that the problem is that I expect my daughter to be more like me. My son is a boy, so I don't expect him to be like me. In fact, since I'm not a boy, I really don't expect ... anything.  The daughter, though, she's in a different category. I know what I liked when I was her age and I'm bothered that she doesn't have similar tastes. How could she like those things? What is her reasoning, motivation, etc?

In case you're wondering what huge choice spurred this post, it was a bathing suit. She wants a type of bathing suit that I have seen, but found very unusual. A rashguard. I know that's what it's called, becasue I did some searching. Huh........