Intense Snugglyness & What's Happening Next Week

A Your Mom post.

My son has been “sick” the past two days - he has a morning cough and some sniffles, which turns into boundless energy and intense snugglyness by 10AM. Basically, he has a cold. Anyway, he’s so lovely and sweet at this age, he’s so interested in cuddling and reading with me, that my POV is if he needs two days at home with mom, then I’d like two days with him. I’m drinking him in.

On the phone with Victoria today, we were talking about him, and about how I think it’s not just OK, but probably good to let him take a bit of a break (he’s only in first grade, anyway), and she made the point that a little unpredictability and spontaneity like that - a little chaos - is helpful for them. It’s something I hadn’t thought of before, that by intentionally not doing everything perfectly, it shows him it’s ok to not be perfect, it’s OK to waver from the things we do because we should and instead listen to the things we really truly need.

Last night at dinner, I spoke with a friend about raising boys - raising boys to be tender and gentle, to protect their innate sweetness, and I feel like this is all part of the same story bundle with… the election. I’ve had a low-simmering level of…not anxiety, but terror, really, about what’s going to happen next week. But it’s been sort of lurking in the shadows for most of the last few months, I have an awful sense of time, and November 5th felt so far off until it didn’t.