Just Be Maevie

I actually think it's a measure of my decent parenting skills that Maeve has no idea what she wants to be when she 'grows up'.  In fact, I don't think the idea of growing up has crossed her mind at all.  She thinks of herself as a big girl, and informs me she's going to get even bigger, but becoming an adult doesn't seem to be a thought in her head.

I read a more recent iteration of the Peter Pan books in which Hook steals the Lost Boys' youth, one at a time, by asking them what they want to be when they grow up.  And although it's obviously not literally true, I think asking children to consider adulthood all the time is unnecessary and kind of tedious. 

At any rate, Maeve has been wanting to watch Elmo goes to the Doctor quite a bit lately, so I asked her casually over hot dogs at Costco if she might want to be a doctor when she grows up.  She shot me a withering glare, and replied No, I'll just be Maevie.  I patted her knee and told her that was a very good idea. 

It's my goal to be as free as my parents were with me on the subject of career.  They managed to give the impression that they really didn't care what field I entered, were sure I'd do marvelously at whatever, and just wanted me to find happiness and rewarding work.  Maybe they would have sounded different if I had been a different kid, but they trusted me to find something I loved to do.  Which is why they, unlike other, older members of my family, aren't worried about the fact that I'm home with Maeve and don't have a real solid plan for what I want to do next.  But for now, I'm just being Maevie's Mom, and in reality that will be the job I'm most proud of, I bet.