Like we need another hole in our heads

Oh me, oh my, my little Miss has some new holes in her head.

I knew we were in trouble last week when some of the neighborhood girls showed off their sparkly new earrings to Ella. So it was off to the mall for us!

Ella asked me if it hurt to get your ears pierced and I told her that it didn't because I swear it never bothered me! But you see that face up there in the picture? That was the look she gave me right after saying, "but, but Mama, that did hurt!"

Whoops.

I had to beg and plead with my Mother to get my ears pierced when I was eight. Practically had to sacrifice small animals to get her to agree. I remember sitting on the counter at Treasury Drugs in Marietta scared out of my wits and wondering just why I begged for this. But I don't remember crap after that, except for a few years of glorious huge plastic earrings in the 80's.

And in my teens I stuck safety pins through my left ear about 5 more times. Never really bothered with my right ear, it was spared the torture. I also stuck a sharp safety pin in my nose, but that one took forever to get through...not painful, just tedious. But the safety pins never hurt my ears either, I didn't even bother with the ice to numb things. I did heat up the pins and dip them in alcohol first!

So responsible. pfft.

My very first job was at the mall piercing ears. I find it hard to believe now that someone looked at me and agreed that I would be trustworthy enough to put holes in people. For real, I wouldn't even trust me to do it now.

So I felt a little emotional taking my own daughter back to the mall where I pierced ears as a teenager. The mall where I met her Daddy. The mall where I spent hours with my best friend before her death, and when I dream of her, I still dream of her walking beside me, fishnets tattered, through that same mall.

Once the girls did the whole "one two three!!" thing and the earrings where in, I let out a huge sigh and then sucked my breath back in when I saw Ella's little lip tremble. She didn't cry, and neither did I after a few tense moments.

Finn looked on and rolled his eyes.

I was so nervous after everything that somehow I agreed to purchase 8 dollar Hello Kitty Lip glosses.

But now Ella is very proud of her sparkles, and feels all grown up. I always promised myself that I would take my daughter to get her ears pierced as soon as she asked, and I fulfilled that personal promise.

But now, what will I do when she gets a bit older and wants me to drop her off at the mall?

Maybe I'll show her how to put the right amount of tatters in her fishnets, and how to lace her boots the correct way.

I hope so. I hope that I will continue to fulfill my dreams of being the right sort of mom for my children.