the short end versus the long end...

...of the stick, that is. There is a balance in the world, isn't there?

Both of my kids, but especially The Boy, have been very mommy-oriented lately. The Babe is still more of Daddy's little girl when it comes to lots of things, but even for her; there are some things for which only mommy will do. As flattering as you'd think that might be, the things for which I am required tend to be the really menial, frustrating, I wish 'I didn't *always* have to be the one to do them' kind of things. For example, The Boy insists that I'm the one to change his poopy diapers. I must be the one to get him into his jams before bed. It has to be me that helps them both brush their teeth. The Babe prefers that her hair washes are done by my hand, and The Boy will not allow daddy to buckle his car seat straps.

It's this last one that I find most frustrating these days, as the temps have been close to zero for some time. Daddy sits in the wind-free, warming up car as I freeze my patootie off standing by The Boy's door trying to wrestle him into the car seat. It was yesterday, as I was wrestling, that I complained out loud "Why do I always get the short end of the stick?"

My husband said to me, quite quickly "It's because you get the long end of the snuggle stick". Hmmm.... Now if you know my husband, you know that he hasn't a care in the world. He is simply not a worrier, and he lets all kinds of stuff just roll off his back... the kinds of things that would really ruffle my feathers. When he told me I get more snuggles from the kids, he said it with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. He knows not to be bothered by this, it's just the way it is. But when he said it, I felt instant guilt.

He's right. I'm the one with whom The Kiddos choose to sit on the sofa and watch TV. It's my lap they curl into for a story, and I'm the first one from whom they want a hug if they've been hurt or are sad. So, here I am complaining that they're so "mommy, mommy, mommy" all the time; forgetting about all the good that comes with that, too.

I might get the short end of the menial chores stick, but I've got the long end of the snuggle stick... I think I'll keep both.