"I don't like mommy"

Well...the first, of many times it will be said "I don't like mommy"

Emily told me that she didn't like me today. It was the first time anything like this has ever come out of her mouth. It was 9:15pm (way past her bedtime) and she was refusing to go to bed.

She's been having difficulty winding down at night because the sun isn't going down. Dusk comes about 11pm or midnight. So, getting her to understand "bedtime" relies on "time" not darkness, as it traditionally does. I, myself, find it difficult to slow down at night because it is so bright in our house; it doesn't help that our family room is FULL of windows, and the light just pours in.

So, after trying to persuade Emily to go to bed for 20 minutes, I started enforcing it...and she doesn't like me for it. I'll have to say, hearing those words come out of her mouth sent daggers through my chest. I know I'll hear them again (kids say things they don't mean), but that very first one hurts.