Most parents have already discovered that their kids have a way of helping them discover depths of patience and sacrifice they didn't realize they had. Heaven knows my parents discovered patience and sacrifice at the hands of myself, and siblings. I, as single me, always thought I'd impose my iron will on my kids and shape them as a sword smith shapes his pieces. Now it is I who is feels in the fire and getting pummeled.
Tonight is an example. I got it in my mind that I would make each of my kids a birthday cake for their birthday. I might use a molded pan, but I would do the decorating. My mom did that for us and I always thought it a nice touch. I got a great start with Grace's first birthday cake. I did a molded Winnie the Pooh. For her second birthday she got a molded Lightning McQueen. Today is Noah's birthday and I was going to use the Lightning cake pan to do his cake. Then we made a 3 hour round trip for a soccer game. Couple the trip with dinner and a game and most of the day was spent. This is reason enough to skip the nobility and succumb to a store bought cake, right?
Well, let's project a few years into the future. Noah is 4-5 and looking at his birthday pictures and notes his 1st cake is store bought, unlike his sisters. He looks at me and inquires, with big, round saucer-like eyes, why it is that he isn't special like his sister. I, being me, will have forgotten we made a day trip to Raleigh and won't have a good excuse. (By the way, that isn't really a good excuse to a 4-5 year old.) Let's face it, there won't be words in human tongue to reassure that little boy.
Back to the present. It is midnight. There lies asleep a boy who would rather eat paper than cake. But I can't look into his eyes in the future and try to explain away his feelings of inferiority that his sister got Daddy's special cakes while he got the supermarket special. The cake tonight might now look like a msterpiece in the morning, but it will be a Daddy special.
Tonight is an example. I got it in my mind that I would make each of my kids a birthday cake for their birthday. I might use a molded pan, but I would do the decorating. My mom did that for us and I always thought it a nice touch. I got a great start with Grace's first birthday cake. I did a molded Winnie the Pooh. For her second birthday she got a molded Lightning McQueen. Today is Noah's birthday and I was going to use the Lightning cake pan to do his cake. Then we made a 3 hour round trip for a soccer game. Couple the trip with dinner and a game and most of the day was spent. This is reason enough to skip the nobility and succumb to a store bought cake, right?
Well, let's project a few years into the future. Noah is 4-5 and looking at his birthday pictures and notes his 1st cake is store bought, unlike his sisters. He looks at me and inquires, with big, round saucer-like eyes, why it is that he isn't special like his sister. I, being me, will have forgotten we made a day trip to Raleigh and won't have a good excuse. (By the way, that isn't really a good excuse to a 4-5 year old.) Let's face it, there won't be words in human tongue to reassure that little boy.
Back to the present. It is midnight. There lies asleep a boy who would rather eat paper than cake. But I can't look into his eyes in the future and try to explain away his feelings of inferiority that his sister got Daddy's special cakes while he got the supermarket special. The cake tonight might now look like a msterpiece in the morning, but it will be a Daddy special.
4 comments:
awww honey...you are SUCH a good daddy. Love you.
I think our little talk last evening got to you. "You're a good man, Charlie Brown!" Mom
hehehe : ) Don't you just love "fairness"?
Happy Belated to Noah! What a cute little kid. Don't worry Aaron, everyone in the family is thoroughly entertained by the crumble of your rough and gruff exterior!
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