Mama Bear

It's a busy time of year for us- not the holidays, but report cards and conference time for me, and deer hunting season for my national-deer-hunting-magazine-editor husband.  Monday night I arrived home just in time for bedtime, after a full and long day of conferences.  It was only 3ish hours later than I would normally see Sam and Anna on a weekday, so not incredibly different than normal but of course I missed my children that much more.  Sam was especially clingy when I got home, but I didn't mind one bit.

He's been playing this pretend bear game lately that he's a bear cub and Daddy is a Daddy Bear, while I'm a Mama Bear.  Anna joins in the action sometimes too.  When he's a Baby Bear, he likes to snuggle up, be held and carried by Mama Bear or Daddy Bear.  Since he rarely slows down these days for a cuddle, I gladly become Mama Bear whenever he wants.  In fact, I'm loving it... and Monday night was no exception.  I loved all the extra cuddles so much so that bath time was delayed a little so I could soak them all in.  I am fully aware that my days of carrying, holding, hugging, and smooching my little boy all over are not unlimited.  That one day he's going to be embarrassed by even a peck on the cheek in front of his friends.  Monday night he was stroking my hair and playing with it while he laid in my lap or carried him laying on my shoulder.  Like I mentioned, these days he's on the move whenever his eyes are open, so these Baby Bear-Mama Bear times are that much more important to me.  One of my primary love languages is physical touch, so when we have moments like this my heart swells with the reciprocal love of a mother and his son.  I marvel in the indescribable wonderfulness of it.  And without fail, I remember the days when it wasn't there and we wished so hard to be parents.