Sweet, Sweet Baby

My sweet baby. He has always been a cuddler. From day one his favorite place was in my arms and after almost 2 and a half years nothing has changed. I love when he gets in one of his moods and needs a cuddle. He'll usually ask for some milk, "nok", and then either lead me by the hand to the couch or ask me to sit down so he can crawl in my lap. His favorite and only real "lovey" has always been my hair. He twirls it in his fingers, rubs it on the side of his cheek and sometimes pokes the ends in his mouth. Sometimes it is annoying. If he is having a particularly rough night, he is not the most gentle when messing with my hair. Inevitably there are times when he runs his sticky hands through it right after I've had a shower, leaving me with a clumpy, tangled mess to deal with. Sometimes when he is mad he will lash out at my locks. But most of the time, he treats my hair like his own personal comforter and even when he is occupied with other things will often run his fingers through it mindlessly. When I have been away from him I often return to his sweet "Mommyyyyy" and a big hug, wherein he automatically goes for a handful of hair.

Strangely enough, he is not a kisser. Daddy gets more kisses than I, and sometimes it makes me sad. But I know his affection for me is strong - just sometimes I miss those no teeth, open mouth slobbers that were so adorable when he was really little. The other day though, he made my week/month/year when I came home from the rigors of holiday shopping to my sweet boy. He ran to me with that adorable cry of "Mommy", arms outstretched, and I scooped him up for a big, hair holding hug. I squished him tight, asked if he missed me, and then the most unusual thing happened. He looked me right in the eye, leaned back a bit and then planted a big puckered-lip kiss right on my mouth. I was so shocked, and thrilled at the same time. It was the sweetest thing! Then, as if that wasn't enough, he proceeded to give me 5 more beautifully sweet baby kisses and loved me until I was literally crying. My sweet boy. May you always reserve your kisses for just when I need them the most!