annoyance and frustration disguised as sweetness.
I swallow it by the mouthful
when the house is a wreck
when the table never stays clean
when they come down from "cleaning"
and it's obvious no cleaning happened.
But then I hear them, clearly,
voices and humor mirroring my own.
They offer sincerity in sarcasm's place,
congratulate each other with high fives,
pat each other on the back,
brag on each other's newest accomplishment,
and my sarcasm loses its taste.
After a rousing game of Uno,
an unbroken streak on Guitar Hero,
a preschooler reading her first word,
or alien cowgirl meets armed knight,
I find myself tossing it out
just as earnestly as they do:
"Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet."
I love when they remind us to be our best selves. :)
Your sweeties. Sweeeeet.
It is sweet...faces like that you have to forgive and just smile :)
Sounds like a happenin' place over there! Really loved your description and how you shed light on the sarcasm in all of us!
"They offer sincerity in sarcasm's place" -- LOVE this line. Our children are our constant teachers, if we'll let them.
Yours are lovable!
I sometimes think it's their adorability that makes parenting hard. Specifically with discipline. My son can be so sincerely sorry it's sweet when he realizes he got himself into trouble. Knowing when to capitulate to the sweetness and when to stay firm is key.
Your house sounds like mine. Especially the dripping sarcasm, but I love to say "sweet" as well.
It's especially wonderful when we find that how we're acting actually becomes a mirror of how we're feeling. I find this often goes both ways, though, too. Lately, I've been on the side. And I need to get to this place you wrote so eloquently about. And fast. My tongue has been too sharp the past few days. I needed this reminder today, Kelly. Thank you.
I will aim to embrace the 'sweeeettt' as much as my dripping sarcasm ;)
Oh, that photo showing Bella with the hat pulled down over her eyes is TOO much!