I ran into my parents in WalMart the other day. I asked them to come to my next belt testing on May 30th. (I know it's still a ways off, but with my parents, plans have to be made well in advance. They're always going off on some trip or other. Plus my Dad works offshore.) The reason this particular testing is so important to me is that my husband & I will be going for our black belts.
I don't really know how to take their response. My Mom said, "Are you SURE you want us to be there?" I mean, if I didn't want them there, would I have asked them? Of course I want them there. Yes, I realise I might not make it, but I still would like to know that they are there cheering me on. If not, I would have waited until I knew I had gotten it and only invited them to the award ceremony.
I'd also like for my kids & my in-laws to be there. It's not likely that my son can come, he's in Germany. Nor is it all that likely that my daughter & her family can come, they will have just moved to Pennsylvania. And it's only a little more like for my in-laws to be there, they live about 3 or 4 hours away. But my parents live right here in the same town. I'm even planning on asking my brother & his family to be there. (They live in the same town, too.)
I guess sometimes, the little girl in me still wants to know that my Mom & Dad are in my corner & proud of me.
). I fit the Middle Child psychological profile to a "T"! That being said, I have come to realize that parents are no different then anyone else we meet. They do the same things that other people do to upset us. It just hurts more because of the "parent" title. I tend to care more about the recognition of my own family then I do from my Mom and Dad. My family is less likely to remind me how I "failed" in some manner.... 
