A couple of years ago Sonya got her ears pierced. This is one of those things that we never had a specific age in mind of doing. My sisters both had their girls' ears done done when they were babies, but I didn't really feel like dealing with it then. Some people make it a rite of passage into teen hood and do it when kids are 13 or older. Andy and I didn't really care. We figured we'd let the girls do it whenever they wanted to do it. Sonya did it a month after she turned six. As Lana approached her birthday last March, I kept trying to convince her to have them pierced.
"Will it hurt?" She would ask.
"Yes, but only for a minute, then you have pretty earrings!" I tried to tell her enthusiastically.
"Then I don't want to," she said.
"But it's only a little hurt for a whole lot of pretty!" I tried again, borrowing a phrase BethAnnDoddKoehn had used on her daughter.
"Nope!" She decided, so I let it go.
Georgia was always back and forth on if she wanted to do it or not, but I kind of wanted them to do it at the same time. I knew if I got Lana on board, Georgia would follow suit. Part of the good and bad with that kid. She's easy going, but she goes along too easily with what Lana is doing. Basically this means I have to hide the alcohol in the next 10 years, because if Lana does it I have no doubt Georgia will follow and the vodka bottles will be empty.
Every time my in-laws or my parents have visited in the past year, I would ask Lana again if she wanted to get her ears pierced. I was trying to use the- your grandparents are here and they would love to see you do this! technique. Sonya had hers done when my parents were here for Christmas a couple of years ago.
"Maybe next time," she'd tell me.
So when Robert and Julia were on their way here last week, we mentioned it again..
"Do you girls want to get your ears pierced this weekend with Medz Mama and Meda Papa?"
Our answer was finally met with an excited "YES!!" from both of them.
So we went with it, before they could chicken out. We decided to do it on Monday morning after going out to breakfast. Andy and I kept asking them all weekend about it, and they both continued to show excitement. There was talk of what kind of earrings they would get and Sonya even showed them her collection of earrings they could borrow later. (Let's see if THAT actually happens). Andy was convinced we were going to walk out of the mall on Monday with one ear pierced and three not. I wasn't so sure though. They were both looking forward to it, and Georgia had always been more on board with this than Lana. In order to keep it that way, I made Lana go first.
We got to Clarie's in the mall and I filled out all the necessary paperwork. The girls picked out their earrings they would have for the next 6-8 weeks and then it was time. Here is where I learned a big difference in their personalities. It's nothing I didn't already know, to be honest, but it became so clear during this process the way they both approach and handle certain situations.
Lana sat in the chair looking nervous. The woman marked her ears for where the earring would go. Right after she made the mark on Lana's ears, before she pulled out the piercing gun, Lana started to freak out. She whimpered a little and tears welled in her eyes. She grabbed my hand tight and started to cry more. I kept reassuring her that it was going to be okay and they were going to look beautiful. The woman pierced the first earring in Lana's lobe and she cried a bit harder from the pain, but just for a second. By the time she went for the second ear, Lana had stopped crying. She realized it wasn't as bad as she anticipated and when she was shown her reflection in the mirror she grinned from lobe to lobe. She took her lollipop and jumped down from the chair, happy with her new look. She had been afraid all this time for nothing. She will always build something up in her head and make it worse than it ever actually is. Wish I could say she doesn't come by that naturally, but....
So Georgia's turn!! The woman had actually recommended that GG not watch Lana get hers done, but she really wanted to. In fact she said,
"I want to watch you Lana and you tell me how bad it hurts!"
I knew Lana's pain would not deter Georgia from doing it. Again, this is why I made Lana go first, because if it would have been reversed, Georgia's tears would have sent Lana running for the escalators. Georgia is the kid who at three years old, watched both her sisters get flu shots and cry loudly. Then when it was her turn to go she hopped up on the table and yelled, "MY TURN!" True story. Georgia does not anticipate or worry like the other two do. At least not for things like this. Things she has no idea about.
She sat in the chair with a big smile on her face as the woman marked her ear. She smiled when she took out the piercing gun and put it to her lobe. I held Georgia's hand, but she did not crush it the way Lana had tried to. Then the woman pulled the trigger. You could almost seen the pain receptors receive the information in Georgia's head. She went from excited and smiling and within fifteen seconds she dissolved to a puddle of tears. I had to hold her still from her sobs so the woman could get the other ear pierced. She cried longer than Lana and had to be comforted a bit more, but upon seeing the new bling in her ears, she calmed down, and even managed a little smile. She picked out her lollipop and our mission was complete.
My in-laws very generously paid for the girls new ears. (Thank you Robert and Julia!) I was happy my mother-in-law could be there to see it. She never had any girls of her own and she is probably one of the girliest ladies I know, so this was a treat for her. My mom got to be there for Sonya's piercing, so I was happy to share the fun of doing this with the little two.
The two of them were so excited to head to school this morning to show off their new earrings to everyone. I had to make sure their hair was away from their ears so the ears could be prominently displayed. I'm sure they will be a big hit. Well, with the girls anyway.
Now comes the fun part. Let's clean and twist them every day! I remember this from Sonya. They want to do it at first, but once the novelty for the new ears wears off I will be chasing then with a cotton ball around the house. And I get to do it with two of them. Yay. Yes, I like to make more work for myself. Oh well. At least it's only for 8 weeks.
"Will it hurt?" She would ask.
"Yes, but only for a minute, then you have pretty earrings!" I tried to tell her enthusiastically.
"Then I don't want to," she said.
"But it's only a little hurt for a whole lot of pretty!" I tried again, borrowing a phrase BethAnnDoddKoehn had used on her daughter.
"Nope!" She decided, so I let it go.
Georgia was always back and forth on if she wanted to do it or not, but I kind of wanted them to do it at the same time. I knew if I got Lana on board, Georgia would follow suit. Part of the good and bad with that kid. She's easy going, but she goes along too easily with what Lana is doing. Basically this means I have to hide the alcohol in the next 10 years, because if Lana does it I have no doubt Georgia will follow and the vodka bottles will be empty.
Every time my in-laws or my parents have visited in the past year, I would ask Lana again if she wanted to get her ears pierced. I was trying to use the- your grandparents are here and they would love to see you do this! technique. Sonya had hers done when my parents were here for Christmas a couple of years ago.
"Maybe next time," she'd tell me.
So when Robert and Julia were on their way here last week, we mentioned it again..
"Do you girls want to get your ears pierced this weekend with Medz Mama and Meda Papa?"
Our answer was finally met with an excited "YES!!" from both of them.
So we went with it, before they could chicken out. We decided to do it on Monday morning after going out to breakfast. Andy and I kept asking them all weekend about it, and they both continued to show excitement. There was talk of what kind of earrings they would get and Sonya even showed them her collection of earrings they could borrow later. (Let's see if THAT actually happens). Andy was convinced we were going to walk out of the mall on Monday with one ear pierced and three not. I wasn't so sure though. They were both looking forward to it, and Georgia had always been more on board with this than Lana. In order to keep it that way, I made Lana go first.
We got to Clarie's in the mall and I filled out all the necessary paperwork. The girls picked out their earrings they would have for the next 6-8 weeks and then it was time. Here is where I learned a big difference in their personalities. It's nothing I didn't already know, to be honest, but it became so clear during this process the way they both approach and handle certain situations.
Lana sat in the chair looking nervous. The woman marked her ears for where the earring would go. Right after she made the mark on Lana's ears, before she pulled out the piercing gun, Lana started to freak out. She whimpered a little and tears welled in her eyes. She grabbed my hand tight and started to cry more. I kept reassuring her that it was going to be okay and they were going to look beautiful. The woman pierced the first earring in Lana's lobe and she cried a bit harder from the pain, but just for a second. By the time she went for the second ear, Lana had stopped crying. She realized it wasn't as bad as she anticipated and when she was shown her reflection in the mirror she grinned from lobe to lobe. She took her lollipop and jumped down from the chair, happy with her new look. She had been afraid all this time for nothing. She will always build something up in her head and make it worse than it ever actually is. Wish I could say she doesn't come by that naturally, but....
So Georgia's turn!! The woman had actually recommended that GG not watch Lana get hers done, but she really wanted to. In fact she said,
"I want to watch you Lana and you tell me how bad it hurts!"
I knew Lana's pain would not deter Georgia from doing it. Again, this is why I made Lana go first, because if it would have been reversed, Georgia's tears would have sent Lana running for the escalators. Georgia is the kid who at three years old, watched both her sisters get flu shots and cry loudly. Then when it was her turn to go she hopped up on the table and yelled, "MY TURN!" True story. Georgia does not anticipate or worry like the other two do. At least not for things like this. Things she has no idea about.
She sat in the chair with a big smile on her face as the woman marked her ear. She smiled when she took out the piercing gun and put it to her lobe. I held Georgia's hand, but she did not crush it the way Lana had tried to. Then the woman pulled the trigger. You could almost seen the pain receptors receive the information in Georgia's head. She went from excited and smiling and within fifteen seconds she dissolved to a puddle of tears. I had to hold her still from her sobs so the woman could get the other ear pierced. She cried longer than Lana and had to be comforted a bit more, but upon seeing the new bling in her ears, she calmed down, and even managed a little smile. She picked out her lollipop and our mission was complete.
My in-laws very generously paid for the girls new ears. (Thank you Robert and Julia!) I was happy my mother-in-law could be there to see it. She never had any girls of her own and she is probably one of the girliest ladies I know, so this was a treat for her. My mom got to be there for Sonya's piercing, so I was happy to share the fun of doing this with the little two.
The two of them were so excited to head to school this morning to show off their new earrings to everyone. I had to make sure their hair was away from their ears so the ears could be prominently displayed. I'm sure they will be a big hit. Well, with the girls anyway.
Now comes the fun part. Let's clean and twist them every day! I remember this from Sonya. They want to do it at first, but once the novelty for the new ears wears off I will be chasing then with a cotton ball around the house. And I get to do it with two of them. Yay. Yes, I like to make more work for myself. Oh well. At least it's only for 8 weeks.
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