loving his valentines

Chris woke up yesterday morning demanding that I be in a good mood. He can always smell my stress from a mile away. I woke up this morning demanding that Chris love his girls well today. I’d bought treats for the boys, and I wanted him to make the day special for his ladies. It’s not his favorite day of the year, but it might be important to the sisters someday. My dad always gave me chocolates and a card each Valentine’s Day, and I remember depending on the gesture as a lifeline during some angsty teenage winters. We rarely go all out for holidays, but I just wanted today to be extra joyful.

We headed into the girls’ room after they awoke, only to find Honor diaper-less as usual. It’s hard to love on a girl who’s covered in poop, so I remedied the situation as fast as I could. The three little pigs all took a bath while the rest of us hung out on the bathroom floor, Avery included. Chris is the family nail clipper, as my privileges were revoked years ago. He took care of everyone’s mani/pedi issues while I let the sisters dig through the moving boxes. Discovery: nail polish! He started off by giving me a Really? look as I opened a bottle for Isaiah Jane… and yet I looked up to find him painting Honor’s toes a few minutes later.

It was the highlight of my Valentine’s Day, by far. Here I am with a ten year-old boy sitting beside me, watching as his dad paints his little sister’s toenails. Avery did a great job oohing and ahhing while the sisters dried, and then they all moved on to the next activity. But not me. I just sat there and soaked it up for a minute. Come to think of it, my dad used to paint my nails on occasion too.

I’ve got it really good, y’all. Happy Valentine’s Day.