The "Bri Face" (Look Of Displeasure)

Bri would probably not be happy that I'm writing this post (so I don't think I'll tell her - heh). This will most likely be one of the last posts I will write where she "could" possibly be embarrassed. It stinks because I love writing and love being real and open, but Bri is getting older - she's almost a middle schooler - and I don't want to make her feel bad or uncomfortable. Hopefully my blog won't become too boring because I have to try to stick to all the "good" stuff.

I will say that B and I have been butting heads a bit more lately. I'm not sure if it is end of school year stress or hormones or both, but I'm totally feeling the "tween" behavior.

If you have been following my blog long enough, you probably know that Briana lacks the ability to hide her emotions. If she is sad, you know it. If she is mad, you definitely know it. And when she is happy, it's written all over her face.

She's always been like this.

Remember this? ...

And this? ...

The infamous Bri pout.

When Bri is angry, you know it. It comes out fully in her facial expressions and body language. Bri is not one to say a lot of words or try to argue with you, it's all in the body language.

 It happens on the soccer field quite a bit. If something goes wrong during a game, her body language changes and she almost starts shutting down in a way. It is so frustrating how little things get to her so easily and she can't seem to recover quickly at all.

But, there is a particular look she gives when she is angry or upset. It's hard to explain, but when I see the look on her face, I know immediately she is ticked off.

"The Bri Face" is what I call it. 

On Friday, Bri's teacher e-mailed some pictures she took of the field day festivities to the parents. She, unknowingly I am sure, managed to capture "The Bri Face." When I saw the class picture, I knew immediately that Bri had been irritated by something. Part of me wanted to laugh and the other part of me wanted to choke her (because every other kid in the picture seemed quite happy - or they were at least able to fake it).

This is the "The Bri Face"...

It looks like she is shooting daggers from her eyeballs.

I showed Bri the picture. I asked her what the heck was up and if she had indeed been angry. She admitted she was irritated because they had been interrupted a few times while taking the photo and it took longer to get a good shot than planned. So through this facial expression, she let the world know how displeased she was with this inconvenience. (And Bri wasn't too happy with me that I called her out on it.)

Sigh...

The good news is that when I arrived at field day that day, Bri seemed to be perfectly happy and excited. I had no idea that she had been irritated earlier that morning. I guess she had gotten over it.

I get "The Bri Face" quite often now when I ask things of Bri. Sometimes just asking her to get dressed and brush her hair/teeth gets me that look. It's tough.

The thing is - sometimes in life, you have to plaster a smile on your face whether you like it or not. "Fake it until you make it." Bri hasn't learned to do that yet. Not sure if she ever will.

The one benefit to having a kid that wears her heart on her sleeve is that when she is happy, she definitely lets you know it...

Her smile lights up a room - that's for sure.

There are just two weeks left of school - then B is off for two months for summer break. I have only two camps scheduled for her and a lot of down time. Middle school is going to challenge her (and me) for sure. I know it. So, I want her to relax this summer as much as possible.

I hope she survives I survive the tween/teenage years. She already makes me tired and she's only 10. Pray for us.