"oh yeah? well i did that, PLUS some!"

last sunday, i overheard this conversation in the backseat between madelyn and my niece, abigail.

madelyn: once, we were at hobby lobby, and i cut my foot on the door when i opened it. blood gushed everywhere.

abigail: yeah, well there was this one time when my whole pinky toenail got ripped off, and it looked like a river of blood.

madelyn: really? well i cut that same foot again on another door, and it was so gross...

thus, the competitive nature between same-age, same-sex cousins was born.

i found it quite amusing that the two were arguing over who had sustained the bloodier injuries in the past, as if it were some great feat. but the fact that they were debating such a topic only proves that children (and yes, even some adults) will compete over anything.

i see a lot of my sister, alecia, in abigail. her drive and competitive nature are only a few of the many traits that my niece inherited from her mother. madelyn, however, is very much the spitting image of me. not so much in looks, but in personality. she's very quiet until you get to know her, and then she'll open up and probably tell you more than you care to hear. she's extremely sensitive, much like me, and doesn't always take up for herself. it's that last trait that is my least favorite, yet the one that is so very me. so when madelyn refused to back down with the "..yeah, well, i almost chopped my arm off..." discussion, i couldn't help but smile.

but i have to prepare myself for that dreadful day when the competition isn't so innocent. when someone else gets the lead in the play. when they don't make the cheerleading squad. when one of them gets dumped for another girl. when their best friend gets a brand new car for her sweet 16.

raising children isn't all sunshine and roses. i've come to realize that it's just as hard, if not harder, living through my children's heartache and disappointment as it was when i was younger and living through it firsthand. so i'm slowly preparing myself for when the competition gets fiercer, the heartache gets deeper, and the worries get bigger. until then, i'm satisfied sitting back and laughing at madelyn and her competitor argue over who has the cutest puppy or the longest bangs.