Sometimes the hardest part of parenting is stepping aside

Today I had the chance to make my daughter super-duper happy but I was torn about it. Why? Not because I wasn't sure I wanted her to be happy. And it wasn't because I was having second thoughts or misgivings about giving this particular thing to her that I knew she wanted coveted. It was because I wanted to be the one to make her happy. I wanted to be the one to swoop in and give something to her I knew her little heart would love. Needless to say, in the end, I was not in the position to get it for her, but someone else was, and though it hurt me to do so, I stepped aside because I knew that in the end what mattered most was her happiness. Sometimes being a good parent really sucks.