The Sweet Spot

It is Sunday afternoon, and as I think back on the week, I realize that we have hit our sweet spot with our son.  I am sure there will be other sweet spots in his life, but this is a pretty great one.

He is seven, and I swear is growing every night in his sleep.

In looking for Christmas gifts for him, I was reminded again and again that he is no longer a little kid.

But he is still very loving and kind, and he still talks to his parents about what is going on in his life.

Hence, the sweet spot...

Old enough to dress himself, but not so old that he refuses to wear a coat to school.

Old enough to reason with, but not so old that he doesn't admit when Mom was right and thank me for it.

Old enough to help us rake leaves on a sunny Saturday, but not so old that he sees it as a chore, rather than a fun activity.

Old enough to play complex board games, but not so old he would rather play with his friends than his parents.

The perfect example this week: on Tuesday, he woke up with a cold and cough.  He didn't feel great on Tuesday, but woke up Wednesday feeling worse.  I debated about keeping him home from school, but he didn't have a fever, so I decided he didn't feel bad enough to justify missing school (by the way, I think this is the hardest part of being a parent, the choosing of what exactly is bad enough to stay home from school, and what just has to be endured).  But Wednesday night, I told him he had to take cold medication.

I will do a commercial for Mucinex Kids Multi-Symptom Cold, because that is our wonder drug for him.  It doesn't have any pain medication, but it decongests his nose, and has both the expectorant and cough suppressant.

My little guy HATES to take medicine.  In the past, we have had to hold him down and use a dosing syringe, squirting it at the inside of his cheek.  In the more recent past, I've held the dosing cup and "helped" him pour it in his mouth, and watched it dribble out the sides of his mouth and all over his PJs (argh).

This is a kid who doesn't like the taste of juice, or sugary/chewy candy with artificial flavors.  So the fact that the box advertises it is "Triple Berry Flavor" or "Bubble Gum Flavor" does nothing for him.

But this time, he picked up the cup, and drank it, without spilling it.  Then he went to bed.  I went into his room the next morning, and he greeted me with,

"Mom, I slept GREAT!  That medicine really helped."

Wow.

How great was that???  I felt like a superstar mom.  I went around all day telling people what he had said.

I know that in just a few years, he will not be as willing to acknowledge that his mom was right about something.  I know that probably by the end of the week, I will make a mistake, and he will be right there to tell me about it.

But for one shining moment, I was the mom who had gotten it right, and had the son singing my praises to prove it.