My mom was in charge and I text her, When’s a good time for pick up? Mom texted back, one hour. Five minutes later I receive another text, Make that 30 minutes, followed by NOW! I head over to find my daughter curled up on the couch weeping – big sad boo hoo tears rolling down her cheeks. Mom explains that cousin doesn’t want to share her new modeling clay – I hear a well-known refrain from across the room –

It’s too special.

Meanwhile, steady crying from Sonja. Now comes the tongue biting as I work to keep these thoughts from tumbling out my mouth:

Over dinner my friend Katie shared her biggest take away from taking my parenting series some many years ago. She said,

“It was this simple yet profound concept of communicating the message of love. For me this means continually focusing on the big picture with my kids and letting them know that I love them. I apologize for my behavior when I lose it with them. Now, they’re used to that and even though I make plenty of mistakes and am not a perfect mother, I’m certain they know how much I love them. Every day I’m aware of the value of communicating that love, even in the smallest interactions.”