Time to invest in a Barbie styling head

So yesterday was Mother’s Day. The day when mothers everywhere are showered with love and attention for three minutes before getting back to sorting the laundry.

I actually had a good Mother’s Day because I received official confirmation that The 30 Day Shred is producing some results. Caroline’s teacher asked them questions about their moms and then recorded their answers on a piece of paper.

According to Caroline, I am “12 feet tall” and “probably weigh about 30 pounds”, which means I’m approximately the same size as Heidi Klum.

That Jillian Michaels is a miracle worker.

On Friday afternoon, Caroline decided it would be fun to play beauty shop. She pulled out all her makeup and hair accessories and asked me to make her look beautiful. As I delicately brushed some blue glitter eyeshadow on her lids, I marveled at how long her eyelashes are and the smoothness of her olive complexion. I swept her hair off her face and let my hand rest for a minute on her cheek, just taking in all of her five-year-old sweetness and thinking that I couldn’t love her more.

After I finished putting on her lipgloss, it was my turn. She managed to yank out half my hair with the hairbrush and then began to put makeup on me. I closed my eyes and felt her brush my cheeks with blush, coat my eyes with glitter, and then, in a perfect imitation of what I’d done to her, rest her hand on my cheek.

I opened my eyes to see her looking at me so intently. She was taking in every angle of my face as if trying to memorize every line. It took my breath away to realize how closely she watches me, how often she copies what I say or do, and how much we love each other. There is an incredible bond that exists between mothers and daughters.

She held my face in her hands for a few more seconds and gently said, “Mama?”

“Yes, baby?”

“You have a big hair growing out of your chin.”

Perfect.

I guess next time we play beauty shop, I’ll have to get a wax.