A comment from John on yesterday's blog put me in mind of something that should follow a post about an Invasion of Granny Accusers. (Thanks, John!)

My oldest child was born just ten days after my 18th birthday, so we are close enough in age to be siblings in some families ... the gap between my second and third child is 32 years, so 18 is an eye-blink ... and we look very much alike, although she is much, much prettier.

As a hip and groovy single mom for most of her childhood, I took pains to look as spiffy as possible when in public and made a reasonable presentation of '70s chic and '80s snazz.

Although there most certainly were downsides to being such a young mother, looking young was not one of them. I never tired of the look of surprise on faces when people realized that the two big kids with me were mine and took to responding to voiced astonishment with a tale of giving birth at the age of four ... "You must have read about it at the time. It was all over the tabloids!"

This of course, embarrassed my kids no little bit, and as it was an oft-repeated load of nonsense eye rolls were the standard accompaniment.

It was my daughter, however, who got most of the yack-yack, as even her friends were surprised when they met me.

"You guys look like sisters!" was a common reaction that drove her straight up the nearest wall.

Although I guessed at the time that she maintained a level of pride about my appearance, she found nothing at all humorous in my practiced response:

"Yeah, we do, but that's only because my daughter looks so darned OLD."

The last time this happened, I was in my forties, and by that time I think she took more hope from the encounter that she, too, would hang on to a youthful glow for a longer, rather than a shorter time, but the 'four-years-old' thing still prompted some eye action.

Now I'm doing the parent thing from the other side of the great divide and having to adjust to a whole new onslaught, this one less amusing ... and flattering.

Oh well. I've rarely managed to fit myself into size 'normal' or 'typical' life shoes, and although that's sometimes made for a rough road, I'm very happy with my journey.

The photo is my daughter with her daughter. Beauties, aren't they!