Too Sweet for Words

LR went on a field-trip with his school the other day. They went to a local farm, had a hayride and picked fresh strawberries. Why didn't my school do cool things like that?? Anyway, that afternoon, when I asked him if he wanted to eat some of them he said "Yes" and insisted that I wash five of them. I knew there was no chance of him eating five strawberries. While he's remarkably good about eating a wide variety of foods, and about trying new ones, getting him to eat anything in quantity has always been.....um, trying. Being a good Daddy (And one who's learned the hard way about picking his battles; this one didn't even come close) I proceeded to wash five of them figuring I could always eat whatever he didn't. That was apparently the plan all along. He categorically refused to eat more than one, saying that the rest were all "for Daddy." I thanked him several times for sharing. But, despite being an incredibly sweet gesture, I didn't think too much about it because one of his best qualities is that he will almost always offer to share whatever he's eating, even chocolate.

But tonight, after we got him to sleep, I realized that we had forgotten to give him more of his strawberries. Time was very much of the essence because they were all very ripe to begin with and apparently four-year-old fingers tend to squish very ripe strawberries. But my wife corrected me. It turns out that she had offered them to him more than once today and was turned down each time. Why? "They're Daddy's strawberries. I picked them for Daddy."

He may not know it yet, but he's got a "Get Out of Jail Free" card for at least a week.

Being Polite is Never a Bad Thing

We have, of course, been trying (and trying) to teach LR manners over the course of his short life. This recently bore surprising fruit.

I was on the phone and LR came in from the other room. He walked right over, said "Excuse me Daddy," and then stood there waiting for me to acknowledge him. For a moment I was a bit stunned, because this occurrence was about as likely as Bill O'Reilly moving to Massachusetts and marrying Barney Frank. Once I collected my thoughts I asked my friend to hold on and said "Thank you very much for saying 'excuse me,' what can I do for you sweetheart?" Surprisingly, he had already turned around and was halfway out of the room by the time I asked him this. I tried again. "LR, did you want something?" He turned and said "No. I burped in the other room so I came in to say 'excuse me.'"

It may not be what I expected, but I'll take whatever I can get.