How Sweet My Boy Is

I don't generally spend a lot of time gushing about how wonderful my kid is. BUT. I'd like to gush a bit about how wonderful my kid is.

First, he has taken all the major changes and upheavals in his life over this past year with remarkable aplomb. I've had no discipline problems, no choosing sides, no machinations to try to get G and I back together, no resistance to B... none of the classic kid problems associated with divorce... to say nothing of a subsequent move and new school.

Second, he is a sweet, polite, gentle creature, with a heart of purest gold. I am grateful every day for his sunny disposition, his eagerness to please, his flexibility. He's not a whiner, he is grateful for everything he receives, and he always gives people the benefit of the doubt.

By God, my kid refills toilet paper rolls. I'm not kidding. Half the adult male population doesn't refill TP rolls. But my little boy does. He looks in the cabinet, finds a new roll, replaces the old one, and throws the empty tube in the trash. Without ever having been prompted. This I count as a minor miracle in and of itself.

Over the past week, I've had two experiences with him in the morning when i drop him off for school. We always arrive with less than a minute to spare before the bell rings at 7:55 and he's counted as tardy. Typically we pull up and I say "7:54, run for the door!" and he hops out, blows me a kiss, and takes off running. A week ago, though, he blew me a kiss and I blew one to him too, as he was turning to leave. He stopped, turned back toward me, and quickly reached out and "caught" my kiss in his hand. Then, grinning, he ran for class.

Then on Monday when I dropped him off, the car windows were all covered with dew. After he got out and closed the door, he stopped and drew a heart on the passenger side window for me, then he put his face in it, smiled at me, and went to school.

Love that little boy.