My friend,
WackyMummy who has been blogging longer than I, states it honestly when she puts above the comment section: “Comments That Make My Day.” Comments definitely have that ability.
Her tagline made me think about the comments that my kids make to me. For the first few years of parenting there are not many comments. You hope you are doing a good job, and there are lots of non-verbals to give you encouragement, but you don’t really KNOW.
And then, the babies start talking. And sometimes you wish you could stop them. My boys make comments, for good, or for bad, that stick in my head. Some of them do make my day. Some of them make me laugh. Some of them make me squirm.
For your amusement, I will start with the squirming.
The other day at McDonald’s (okay, no judging) while I was trying to order the standard, “Three boy Happy Meals, please” my four-year-old interrupted by saying, loudly, “Mommy, your butt is squishy.” Completely red in the face, I turned to him with my “BE QUIET eyes” and whispered, “SHhhh.” Of course he repeated it several times, each time louder than the previous. “SHHHHHH,” I hissed, desperately. “Squishy, Squishy,” he said. I will have you know that I ordered nothing for myself.
And then the other day at the zoo, I was trying to save a little money, and didn’t feel especially hungry, so I ordered a kid’s meal for myself. “Mommy, why did you order FOUR kids meals? “Shhh.” “But MOMMY, why did you order FOUR of them? “Shhh.” “Is one of them for YOU?” “Shh!!” I said with those same glaring eyes. (Children don’t seem to respond to shushing or wide-eyed glares, do they? Yet that seems to be my only line of defense in those situations.)
The other morning I was making my bed. My four-year-old noticed and said, “Mommy, why are you making your bed? Is someone coming over?” Okay, so the cat's out of the bag. Just let me know before you come over, ‘kay?
And then there are the comments that make me re-think things.
“Mommy, you’re mean.” Sadly, sometimes I have to agree and apologize.
“Mommy, you said you were going to play with me.” That one stings. That one keeps me up at night.
But then there are the comments that do MAKE my day.
“Mommy, you are the best Mommy in the whole wide world.”
“Can I sit on your lap?”
“Ooh Mommy! You look SO pretty in that dress”
“Mommy, if you wore only one (hoop) earring instead of two, you could be a pirate Mommy. That would be more fun.” I loved that one.
And my favorite: “Mommy, when I grow up, I am going to buy the house next door, that way you can see your grandchildren every day. I have houses picked out for my brothers too.”
Yes, that one MADE my day. That one made my whole week.
I love comments. Most of the time.