Mama's Boy

After I picked up G from school yesterday, we headed to SuperTarget. I needed to find a store where I could buy the pasta and mushrooms as well as the wine I needed in order to make my killer spaghetti. SuperTarget fit the bill, carrying both groceries and wine. (And the new lightbulb for G's lava lamp to boot.)

Now, I was highly skeptical of taking G to SuperTarget because the Target logo was one of the first logos that G knew by sight. Target = Toys. (It's right up there with the Golden Arches, which I think is the first logo ANY child born in the U.S. knows.) Still, I was up for the adventure and planned to inform him that any toy he came across would immediately go on his birthday list instead of the shopping basket. I readied G by telling him the specific list of items I expected to purchase.

We entered the store and picked up the light bulb and then proceeded to head across the store to the grocery half, crossing right in front of the toy section. G didn't ask or even blink as we passed the toys and games aisles. I could hear, several aisles down, every parent's worse nightmare. A small child screaming at the top of their little lungs: "I WANT A TOY... WHY CAN'T I GET A TOY... YOU NEVER LET ME GET A TOY! PLEASE LET ME GET A TOY! I WANT A TOY!" Within a moment, a very calm mother pushed a cart across the walkway in front of us and turned back to view the toy section. G and I walked past the standoff quickly. In the Barbie aisle stood a little girl, about three, fists balled in fury, pink-ribboned ponytail swinging madly like the tail of a pissed-off cat. She marched towards her mother, still screaming at the top of her lungs.

G looked at me with wide, innocent eyes.
G: "That girl is having really bad behavior."
Me: "All of us have days like that, sweetie."
G nods in sympathy.

I had to smile at his calmness and matter-of-fact assessment of the situation. I have been lucky with G, a few temper tantrums here and there. A few meltdowns. Most of the time, he's passive by nature just like his dad. (Although, he can certainly be stubborn like me.) I suspect it's gonna be a whole new world with this baby girlchild. I hope G can maintain his calm demeanor when it comes to dealing with his female genetic counterpart. I have hope though. Especially with what happened next...

We passed the girl's section and I stopped to look for items to send in a care package to my nieces in Germany. As I wandered through the section, G acted in typical boy fashion, dashing around the clothing displays with abandon. He would slip into the center of racks and giggle wildly. This was fine, he stayed close and wasn't in anyone's way. It left me free to browse. I soon came across a couple of racks of dancing outfits, items perfect to send to my nieces ages 4 and 6 who *love* their dance class. I pulled out several pink and black items with attached tutus and began to narrow the field when...

G came up to me and viewed the pink velvet leotard with an attached tutu I was holding and exclaimed:

"HOW CUTE IS THAT!"

He felt the tutu material and stated "...and soft too!" He looked at me and nodded his approval with those once more wide and innocent eyes. Then, in a flash, he was off and running around racks again.

I stood frozen in place. Did my ears and eyes deceive me? Did my son just exclaim that a PINK VELVET LEOTARD was actually "CUTE"? I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Seriously? My son appreciated something girlie? Something without an engine. Something you don't hit or kick. Something actually girlie AND cute.

WOW.

I really think we did hit the genetic lottery!