Day Six: My Children

I love the days when my children impress me. Not that I don't have high expectations of them everyday, but I love those days when they go above and beyond.

Today, for instance, we dropped off my four-year-old at school and headed straight to the realtor's office. My husband and I are house hunting and we needed to sit down and sign some papers, go over some details, etc. etc. - Nothing a two-year-old would be interested in, but without a babysitter to leave him with his attendance was mandatory.

So there we were, for an hour, talking about things that didn't interest him in the least and I can happily report that he didn't act up once. He drew with his pen and paper, he looked out the window of the door at the secretary sitting outside the office, he asked a few questions, cracked a few jokes (and of course at the end of our meeting he deposited a nice present in his diaper which I had to take care of) - but not once did he yell, kick, scream, demand attention or that we leave. In fact, the realtor asked, "He's only two? I can't believe how well behaved he is." (She also pointed out several times how cute he was ... what can I say? She's right!)

This has happened a few times before - people outside the family complimenting me or my husband about our kids being well behaved - and it reminds me of my mother. My mother used to always tell us when someone complimented us for being well behaved and I remember feeling good about myself when she did. I also remember how proud of us she was and now I know how good she must have felt. It's always encouraging, and a great ego boost, when someone tells you you're doing a good job with your kids.

So today I am grateful for my children and the fact that I haven't totally screwed them up :)

I'm also grateful for the gingerbread man necklace my son brought home from school today. It's got lots of glitter, sparkles and cute little colored balls on it and he was so proud of himself for making it - I am, too!