LAUGHING

What is my favorite sound in the whole world? The sound of my boys' laughing!!! This has been one of the joys of parenthood from the very first laugh. I remember playing "peek-a-boo" with them when they were only a few months old. They would laugh and laugh and I would just keep playing. I even remember calling my dad so he could hear them laughing. He loved that!

The other day I heard this favorite sound again. This time it was because I was tackling both boys and tickling them. This is also a favorite thing that I do with my children. I believe it's a favorite thing of theirs too, because they are always tackling me.

After our tackling/tickling session the other day, I got to thinking about how much longer my boys would want to do this. How much longer will they want to cuddle with me on the sofa or the bed? How much longer will they want hugs from me? How much longer will they want me to be involved in their lives??

The way I see it, a parent should want their children to no longer need to cuddle or hug you. They should want to become independent from their parents. But, they should be able to do this without separating completely from their parents. This is my goal, to have my children become independent from us. But, I want them to always be able to come to us when they need to. They should be able to come to us for a hug when they need one. They should be able to sit with us on the sofa and cuddle up next to us whenever they want to.

I know that there will come a time when they feel they are too old for these things. But I want them to always know that we will be here for them. We will always be available for cuddling/hugs/tickling--whatever and whenever.

I guess the real work will be making sure they know this. The real job is helping them become independent people, while still being able to lean on us and not be embarrassed about it. The real job is making sure we are always open with them about things. The real job is making sure they know they can come to us with their problems and we will help them deal with them. The real job is making sure the lines of communication never shut down--ever. I guess we have a lot of work ahead of us still.

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