Sometimes I feel so lucky to have The Bean, it’s kind of embarrassing. Who knew that the cynical, hard-bitten me of yore would turn into the sentimental, mushy mom of today? It’s not just for my own child, either -I’m way more tolerant of ALL children now, and of course reading a new story about one of them being hurt in any way is just about enough to drive me insane. Does this happen to all mothers? What about fathers?
Anyway, recently, my adorable Bean has done a few things that just made me feel even mushier, and forget about those times that she does something destructive, or acts spoiled, or screams and has a tantrum for no good reason.
One night after dinner, I went upstairs to change into my yoga pants, and she followed me up the stairs. She came into my closet and watched me, then told me to put my pants back on. “I’m just changing into these instead,” I explained to her. Then of course she wanted to take her clothes off. So I told her to wait a minute, and I’d take her in her room and she could get undressed (of course I didn’t add that I would take advantage of this opportunity to change her pull-up and put on her jammies!). As we walked through my room she asked to be picked up, and when I did, she wrapped her arms tightly around my neck and hugged me fiercely. “I love mommy,” she said.
*melt*
Then just last night, after dinner again, I was sitting on the couch reading a book. Bean dragged her big tub of Legos (well, actually Duplos) over and pushed it up onto the couch, then climbed up to sit next to me. Out of the blue! Unbidden! Just wanted to be close to her Mommy. I was starting to feel drowsy so I got up and turned off the overhead light I’d been using to read, maneuvered the ottoman into an especially comfortable position, then reclined on the couch next to her and shut my eyes. I guess I dozed off for a while, and when I woke up, she was snuggled up against me, quietly watching TV while I napped. After waking up I gave her kisses and she gave me more hugs. Then later, before bed, when she usually asks to sit in Daddy’s lap to read a story and drink her milk*, she demanded to sit in Mommy’s lap. I felt kind of good for winning the popularity contest there.
*Yes, she still drinks a LOT of milk. Out of a bottle. She needs it to calm down at night before going to sleep. At two and a half, I realize that it’s time to be getting rid of the bottle for good, but I can’t for the life of me figure out how to make that happen, when she a.) specifically asks for milk at bedtime and b.) very specifically wants it in a bottle, not a cup or sippy. Plus, giving it to her just calms her down so well, it’s a blessing really. I guess I need to Google this and look for parenting advice. Then again – what’s the harm? I’ve never met a teenager who still drank milk from a bottle, so I know she’ll outgrow it someday. Right?
