The days I expect to go by without incident are constant battles of spirited-intense-intelligent-feisty small-person will versus spirited-intense-intelligent-feisty parent will. Hell on wheels trying to be gentle and only rarely succeeding is the baseline around here.
But when I think things *should* be tough Peanut makes me laugh and relax (as he did last year when we spent eight hours shopping in a holiday marathon totalling more than the rest of the year combined, and today when we needed extra supplies for tomorrow’s bake-fest of multiple goodies) He’s patient when I least expect it; giving, sweet, and loving not necessarily when i need it, but when I really appreciate it.
I laughed at several proclamations in the car and stores today, surrounded as we were by people trying their best to cram 4,000 things into their day, and doing a pretty poor job of holding it together—including “I want to have pfefferneuse every day if it has protein!” and “don’t worry, Mommy, if they don’t have healthy rice cereal we can make the cookies out of healthy oatmeal.”
My favorite, though, which had other people in the way overcrowded supermarket laughing:
P: I see candy corn!
M: Yes.
P: I think I want some.
M: Not today.
P: Well, for Halloween.
M: Halloween is 10 months away, so we’re set on candy corn for now.
P: 10 months?!?!?
M: Yup.
P: I can wait.
NaptimeWriting 
What’s the frickin shelf life of candy corn?!?!?!?!?!?!?
I giggle at pfefferneuse. It makes me think of Rose from the Golden Girls.
Oh, Peanut. I wish I could give you pfefferneuse chock-full of protein. A boy so eager to wait for candy corn deserves his protein cookies.
Yea Peanut! I totally know how you feel. I lost my mommy mojo for a few days, and I hated it. I’m so glad you’re having great days. I love that kid.
He is so reasonable. My girls are like that too and it always shows up when I expect it least and need it most.
PS: Would you hate me if I mailed him candy corn?
He IS so reasonable. I almost wish candy corn came up at an earlier holiday so he wouldn’t have to wait so long…
ps: is there Christmas candy corn?
Happiest Christmas!!
jc, in my experience, open candy corn has a couple of weeks, tops. Unopened you’ve got about a month. Stale candy corn is almost as nasty as the third fistful of fresh candy corn.
Kitch, I’ve tried. Our protein powders, used often in smoothies, do not bake well. Oh well. He got his fill of pfefferneuse.
fae, I hear you. Hang in there. And don’t be jealous. We had *one* day of awesome. The spell was broken once he understood how impressed I was.
ck, yes, yes I would hate you. Except that I never could. Never fear. He’s a whore for candy canes, so this season has its own thrills for him. See pfefferneuse, protein-filled.
Ink, I feel the same. I almost bought it, but stuck to my guns (it’s not like this is May, the beginning of the candy drought in American culture). He’s full of cookies and gingerbread house candy and candy canes and chocolate gelt and all manner of other normally avoided sugar, so don’t worry about him too much.