And So It Begins . . . Just a Lot Sooner Than I Imagined

The whole point of parenting is to raise your children to be better than you, right? Smarter, kinder, stronger . . . . Progress. So, you hope that one day your children exceed you in every way; and I am prepared for that day. I am hoping for that day. And with Finley, I know that day will come. But, I got a stiff shot in the arm yesterday, and realized "that day" has already arrived.

Natalie entrusted me with Finley the other evening as she enjoyed a much-deserved "Girls' Night Out." Now, I must say that some artistic license is being taken using the term "Night". The crowd that Natalie "rolls" with doesn't quite close out any bars. In fact, most "Girls' Night Out" begin and end with the sun still shining down on us.

In any case, with Natalie gone, dinner duty falls to me. No problem. Finley is recovering from a stomach bug, so I just keep it simple and heat up some rice and vegetables leftover from last night's dinner. I have Finley's food ready and on the table in a flash. But, he won't eat. He just keeps repeating "FinE Zebra". Hmmmmmmmmm??? Since, I'm pretty sure that serving zebra is against the law in North Carolina, I go into translation mode. Oh, "Finely's cereal bar". I repeat this back to Finley, and he confirms that he would like a cereal bar. No problem. I get a cereal bar. But Finley just looks at it and then at me, and repeats (more slowly this time): "FinE Zuppo". Oh, "Finley's hippo"! Finley has a hippo friend who comes to dinner quite often. After about 5-6 rounds, resulting in milk, apple sauce, crackers, etc. being brought to the table and promptly rejected by Finley, it finally dawns on me. Finley is saying . . . "Finley say prayer!"

Needless to say, I felt a bit humbled (and grateful that we both have Natalie in our lives) by my little man remembering (and reminding me) that we needed to say a prayer before we started eating. And so it begins . . .