Jan 05 2009
Living Vicariously
Some people choose to live vicariously through their children. They push their children at sports to go further than they were ever pushed as a child. They load their kids up with gobs makeup and send them off to pageants and talent shows. They do crazy things to get their daughter on the cheerleading squad or son on the varsity team.
I always thought it was a bit odd to live vicariously through your children. I mean, if you’re unhappy with something in your life, fix it! Join a dance team for adults or a local soccer team, for Heaven’s sake. Don’t force your dreams on your child. It’s just sick.
So, here I am judging people who live vicariously through their children, when I realized I do the exact same thing. Last night, I could not get to sleep and today I’m terribly exhausted. Having two kids means you don’t get to nap when one child goes down, though I want so badly to curl up in a ball and sleep for a couple of hours.
While I was putting Bean down for her nap this morning, I tucked her tightly into her super soft blankie, stuck a pacifier in her mouth, and lived vicariously through her that I was the one being snuggled up for nap time. All morning, I’ve been living vicariously through Bean’s ability to nap during the day. I make her as warm and cozy as I would want to be during nap time. For a brief moment, after lying her down and watching her eyes droop, I imagine I’m the one doing the napping.
But no, I had my time to nap when I was Bean’s age. It’s time for me to stop living vicariously through my daughter’s naps and accept that part of my life has passed. Grow up, Lindsay, sheesh.
