I Love You Enough....

To my daughters, Madison and Payton....I love you enough:

I loved you enough... to ask where you were going, with whom and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough... to insist that you save your money and buy a bike for yourself even though we could afford to buy it for you.

I loved you enough... to be silent and let you discover that your new best friend is a creep.

I loved you enough... to make you take a Milky Way back to the drugstore (with a bite out of it) and tell the clerk " I stole this yesterday and want to pay for it"

I loved you enough... to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your room, a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough... to let you assume the responsibility for your actions even when the penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

And I loved you enough...to say NO when I knew you would hate me for it. Those are the most difficult battles of all. But I will be glad when I win them because in the end you'll win too.