Near

Nick is his father’s child. It’s something I’ve grown to accept. Yet lately, I’ve been moving up in the ranks with this oldest child of mine. I find him seeking me out more often. He regularly comes up and wraps his long arms around my waist for a hug. Whenever I am on the computer he is right next to me, leaning all 75 pounds into me. Whenever I go to the store he is the first to volunteer to come with. He loves grocery shopping with me (I think it’s the hope of getting a sample and his newfound love of reading my shopping list) and even offers to come to Target as long as my list isn’t too long. 

And sometimes, like tonight, he just wants to hang out. So, while I was making dinner he hopped up on the desk in our kitchen to work on his summer workbook that we started but never finished. He would ask with help with a word or to check his work, but mostly he just sat there. And it was nice.

And because he was being so sweet (and I was cleaning out the kitchen) I gave him a couple cheese crackers from a box that was about to be finished and some 7-UP from a two liter I wanted out of the kitchen. I also let him try some SunChips that I was about to throw away because I never eat them and he loved them. That’s what he’s doing here. He said “I just can’t think about anything but those chips. I have to have more.” And while I was feeling nice, I wasn’t that nice. Dinner was only 15 minutes away.

After dinner our bonding time continued. While Mike bathed Ben (the older boys had taken showers when we came home from the pool earlier in the afternoon), and Zander watched Power Rangers I hung out with Nick while he put together one of his new LEGO sets. I was the page-turner and small bag lady. They are very important jobs you know. And while we didn’t say much (SpongeBob was keeping most of his attention) it was nice just to spend some alone time with Nick. Maybe he hasn’t completely divorced me afterall.