I want her to like me.

Is that so wrong? I just want my three year old to like me. I'm her mother. I often have little daydreams of what it will be like in thirteen years when some boy likes her and asked her to dance, and we get to go buy her a dress and a pretty necklace and do her hair all pretty and talk and giggle and tease her about her first date. Or her coming home from school and sharing some cookies with me in the kitchen, talking about her day, then working on homework. In my head, I see us being friends. A healthy mother/daughter relationship.
So today, Dad was home and he thought we should get out and do something. The girls and I have stayed home all week due to one illness after another. So, I'm thinking, YES, let's go do something. Phil suggested we see if any good kid movies are playing at the theaters. And he knows me too well. I will never turn down the opportunity to get some popcorn. I know it's horrible for you with that much butter, but ever once in a while, its OK, right? So, I fix my hair a little and we get to talking. Nora is not going to sit through it. I'll probably end up leaving the theater. It's all true, so I stop getting ready and told him to just take Ella. Then he tells me to just take Ella. Have some girl time alone with her. For a minute, this sounds like fun. So, I go find Ella, and excitedly ask her if she wants to go see a movie with me.
Um, Stink Eye much?
The sting of rejection...it hurt. So, in an effort to at least have somebody have some fun today, I quickly say, "You want to go with Dad?"
She raises her eyebrows and nods, gets up and goes to find her shoes. Fine.
Don't get me wrong. I'm so glad that she loves her Dad. But when he's around, I am chopped liver. And I know that little kids are just that way sometimes, and that she's around me ALL the time, but what's wrong with having some fun with me?
I sure hope my mom is right and that it will be different one day, and that she's just around me a lot and when Dad's home, it's different and fun. Until then, I get....
The Stink Eye.