Love You Mommy

Last week, I had a bad day. I took some information my husband shared with me, digested it, stewed on it, and was ready to cause him bodily harm by the time he got home and started cooking dinner for us. In the middle of all that mess, God gave me a moment to really think about what is important to me.

I had left work, picked up Kale, and driven all the way home. Normally, the afternoon ride home is full of babble between me and Kale...topics include trucks, trains, ambulances, Pawpaw big trucks, and so forth. I mean, seriously, this is really riveting conversations we have! Or not. Anyway, back to my point. I had driven Kale all the way home and was stewing the entire time. As I pulled into our driveway, I realized that I hadn't said a word to Kale for the entire drive...and its a 20-25 minute drive. I was so lost in my own world that I gave him no choice but to be lost in his. I turned off the truck, took off my seat belt, and turned to look at him. I said "I love you Kale". I have said this to him countless times since he was born (and even some before then). Several weeks ago, he surprised all of us by saying "love ya'll" back to my mom on the phone. He could have gone the rest of his life saying that and we would have been just overjoyed hearing him say it that way. As if saving it for a day I needed it most...he chose this day to respond with "love you mommy". My eyes welled with tears and I couldn't get to him fast enough to give him a giant hug. I was feeling way, way, way mushy. Of course, he responded as any boy would--he headed for his daddy's lawn mower and just left his mommy standing there all mushy feeling.

I didn't end up causing my husband bodily harm. There was some gnashing of teeth until we finally came to a point that we could both accept the reality of the situation and acknowledge our separate frustations. As dinner was nearly ready and we found that mutual point of acceptance, I told my husband that I had something that would make his day. And it did. And immediately after Kale showed him that he could say "love you mommy", he also showed his daddy he could tell him "love you daddy."

I won't lie. I think Kale softened me up because he knew his daddy was in for it. And it worked. Then he proceeded to pay his daddy back for having to do such hard work by trying to entirely kick his daddy out of our bed a few nights later.