Lessons Learned

I'm linking up with Mama Kat again this week, and the prompt is “10  Lessons Your Child Could Teach You” I've altered it just a tad to “10 Lessons He HAS Taught Me” You know, artistic license and all…

1. Cry if you need to. It doesn't matter if it's about the lack of bananas in the house, or because you fell and skinned your knee. If you have the urge to cry, sometimes you just have to let it out!
2. Lightning McQueen is a neutral. Max has a Lightning McQueen t-shirt that my mom got him, and he loooooves it… he wears it with anything, and he'll  say, “Don't I look so handsome?” even if he's paired it with brown plaid shorts and camo print flip flops. (And yes, he always does look so handsome!)
3. Underpants matter. He would probably still be upstairs in his room, trying to decide between Thomas, Mater and Mickey, if I let him. He cares more about what's covering his butt than what the rest of his outfit might be on any given day. Today, he made a case to only wear underpants to day care because “I'm so comfy!”
4. Everything's better with ketchup. Ev-er-y-thing. Cucumbers, string cheese, pizza, chicken, cherry tomatoes. All taste better with a little touch o' Heinz.
5. Repeats aren't bad. He will watch the same episode of a show over and over, and laugh every time, like it's totally new to him. I wish I was so easily entertained!
6. Jokes don't need a punchline to be funny. Max loves telling jokes, but it is not one of his strengths. Allow me to tell you a knock knock joke a la Max: Knock Knock! / Who's there? / Ummm…. banana! / Banana who? / Banana YOU! Followed by massive laughter. Replace the word “banana” with anything in his line of sight (truck, shoes, cat, Chick Hicks) and that's his entire joke repertoire.
7. Brushed or combed air is overrated. Pretty self-explanatory, right? He's a fan of the touseled look, and there is next to nothing I can do to prevent it.
8. Flossing is fun. OK, I can't really understand this one… he specifically requests that I floss his teeth. Weird, right? I mean, I'm glad, because his 2 front teeth are VERY close together (read: overlapping a little, we need to start saving for braces!) so flossing helps make sure we get everything, but still! I think it's his favorite part of the dental routine!
9. Numbers and letters are fascinating. I love watching him learn; he's kind of obsessed with numbers and letters, and it's a love I hope lasts forever. He's always asking me “What rhymes with ____?” or “How do you spell ____?” or “How many _____ are there?”
10. My heart is capable of more love than I thought possible. Seriously. Sometimes it hurts just to look at him, I love him so much. To think that my own parents love me as much as we love Max, incredible to consider. I look at him in awe most days. We're the luckiest parents ever.