Rather than sitting downstairs where the coffee table was full of snacks, the TV was blaring The Spongebob Movie and there were enough brand new god damn Shopkins to fill a skip. They wanted to lie in a darkened room with me. Just me. I asked my girl why and she simply said "because I love you". And this always shocks me. The overwhelming love I feel for my kids is returned from them ten fold. I'm the centre of their world. When I'm grumpy, when I'm in my pyjamas, when I'm sick, when I'm shouting. They want to be right by my side.
Pyjamas. Children one inch from my face. Standard
And it can at times be overwhelming and we worry about disappointing them or letting them down. It's reason why we feel the guilt over breastfeeding, dummies, weaning, potty training. We want to get everything just right to be worthy of such love. And sometimes we can be so focused on doing everything right that we miss the love. We want everything to be just so. The right schools, the correct shoes, the best toys and the picture perfect life. Which they actually couldn't give a sh*t about.
Pyjamas. Again. Child and a guinea pig from me one inch from me. Standard
From what I can gather from friends this love lasts a lifetime but the expression of this love doesn't. It's short lived. There will come a day when no-one will care that I'm bed with a stinking cold. The only issue with going to the bathroom is that it will be full of spotty teens and the only bed they will be creeping into at 3am? Will be their own, and they will be p*ssed. So? Whilst sometimes, OK a lot of the time, I want to scream "I JUST NEED FIVE MINUTES FOR GODS SAKE". The other times I am going to try and embrace this all encompassing love before I have to count on my husband for it. OK you're right. I'll have to get a puppy.