Manners

There are all sorts of things you can get happy about in life. What I have realized as I've gotten older is that you can pretty much boil sources of happiness down into two categories - superficial and actually worthy of caring about. Into the first category, superficial, go things like new cars, the Giants beating the Patriots (it almost happened), the Yankees beating the Red Sox (it could happen), chocolate (my wife would disagree), all the lights being green on your way to work, things like that. Into the other category, the one that really matters, go far fewer items. And, most aren't even items at all. Having a job that provides for you and your family, unconditional love, a warm place to sleep, things like that.

Where am I going with this? The point of this post, or points as it may be, are my kids. My son J, gap toothed, high-energy, crazy, amazing ball of activity JAM, and my daughter Red, willful, funny, inquisitive Red, are both high on the list of the most polite kids I have ever met. In some way, unbeknownst to wifey and myself, we are in the process of raising kids who have wonderful manners. To everyone but us most times, but great manners nonetheless. What brought this on? It really is an everyday occurrence, but two nights ago, as I was changing the diaper of baby Pudge, Red was walking past me and said "escoose me daddy." She is 19 months old and she thought enough about the fact that she needed to brush by me to get by that she said excuse me! Then, last night, as I was rocking with her before I put her down to sleep, I coughed. A few times. Each time, she looked up, tool her thumb out of her mouth and said "bess you daddy." I didn't have the heart to tell her that I didn't sneeze. :) I just said thank you and squeezed her a little tighter and thought to myself that we are so fortunate to have kids like this.