Independent Ice Cream Queen

There are pros and cons to having an independent child. Its a pro that she can put on her own shoes when we are in a hurry to get somewhere. Its a con when she puts them on, opens the front door and goes outside without me realizing it.

As she sat and ate her ice cream today, I noticed the slim lines of melted ice cream forming on the sides of the cone. And the perfect scoop that I had meticulously formed with the ice cream scoop was loosing its form.

"Do you want mommy to help clean up your ice cream?" I asked. Being able to lick the sides of your child's ice cream cone is a rite of passage for most moms. A ray of light in the overwhelmingly cloudy days that motherhood can bring.

"No I got it," Josie said as she licked all around the sides of the cone and expertly reshaped the ice cream scoop with a quick circular movement of her wrist. It looked exactly as it did when I gave it to her, only smaller.

As I leaned back into the couch, I realized it was somewhat a relief that she could figure out how to clean up the ice cream cone by herself. But its a little depressing to learn that my daughter needs me about as much I need a few licks of her ice cream cone.