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Realizations

I can remember it clear as if it were yesterday.  Me, a little kid sitting there with some dinner still on my face and my mom, not hesitating for one second to lick her finger to wipe it off.  It was just what moms did.  Or so I thought.  Until I was about 13, walking through the mall when mom spied something on my face, stopped me, licked her finger and made the approach.  I don’t know what set off the alarms that day,  the cute boys standing there that no doubt noticed, but I suddenly realized someone was using spit to clean off my face.  Ummm…no thanks.  Never again.

I swore then and there that I would never do that to my kid.  Not only was it disgusting, it was embarrassing.

Skip to the other day.  Jaia and I took a truly glorious walk to our local Starbucks.  Jaia had a hot chocolate, me a steamed milk.  We sat in the oversized chairs by the windows and had a lovely coffee date.  When we were getting ready to leave, I noticed that Jaia still had chocolate on her face and I grabbed a napkin and wiped.  Most came off, but not all.  My options were A) to collect all of our stuff and head to the bathroom to get cleaned up before we left or B) to MacGiver my own solution.  So I spit a little bit on a napkin and began to wipe her face.  She let me at first, but then must have realized what was going on and stopped my hand, looking at me oddly.  Then she says, “Mama, why did you put your wet on me?”

I immediately flashed back to my own childhood, and that day in the mall, in particular.  It made me laugh.  Laugh hard.  Laugh uncontrollably.  I had done what I swore I would never do and hadn’t really thought twice about it.   Moms lick their fingers or spit on napkins to clean their kids faces because they can.  And it’s easy.  And closer than wipes or a sink or bathroom.  And my outspoken child picked up on it at the ripe old age of three, where as I let it go on for 10 years past that.

So as I’m sitting there laughing, wishing another mom was in earshot to have heard what Jaia said, Jaia begins laughing at me laughing uncontrollably.  And we can’t stop.  And now, all the people who I wished had been eavesdropping before are staring at us for making a ruckus.

It was awesome.  That kid is hilarious.  And probably has a messy face.

May 4, 2010 - 8:34 am

Dan - When you two get laughing, you feed off each other and there’s no stopping you! I need to get it on video 🙂

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