New aged mallrats?

I hope Pea doesn't relegate me to the other side of the food court too quickly.

Pea, the Pod and I enjoyed an amazing weekend.  The weather in our neck of the world was great, so we took advantage and got out of the house as much as possible.  The Pod has had cabin fever for quite a few months and the above zero temperatures allowed us to enjoy a weekend like we haven't since long before Pea was born. 

On our way out, we stopped at a mall food court for some lunch.  I had Thai, the Pod had Mexican, and you don't care.

As we sat, eating our multicultural fare, a trio of teenage girls sat down behind us to enjoy their lunch.  I immediately got giddy, because there is nothing like eavesdropping on mallrat conversation... 

"OH.  MY.  GOD.  Did you see Billy at H&M, he is, like, SO hot.  And he totally winked at me, and not because he has that nervous twitch in his left eye, he winked at me with his right eye.  He totally wants me."

Or...

"Like, Rachel totally told Mr. Gym Teacher that she got her period in PE on Thursday, but she TOTALLY didn't because her cycle and my cycle are totally in sync since we were best friends in grade 7.  So I was like 'Rachel, you suck, you're ruining that excuse for all of us' and she was all like "I don't care, Emma, I don't feel like playing soccer-baseball today'.  God, I hate her."

Much to my chagrin, these particular teenage girls weren't your typical teenage mallrats.  They sat quietly talking about every day things, and never got into the crass hormonal ramblings of their peers.  It was disappointing, but refreshing.

Then, the Pod leaned over the table and said "You know the girls sitting behind you?  One girls' mom is sitting at the table over there having lunch."  The mom was indeed sitting 10 feet from the girls.  This was confirmed when she got up, approached the trio, and they left the food court together.

This got me thinking.  The girls didn't seem to care that the mom was sitting just beside them.  The teen wasn't annoyed or upset.  It was what it was.  And the mom wasn't crushed that her daughter wanted to eat with her friends.  She was happy to give her daughter and her friends the independence and distance they clearly deserve, as trustworthy young ladies.

I may not know what I want my Pea to become, but I hope she doesn't relegate me to the other side of the food court too quickly.