Day 370

My thoughts on this sunny day:

Where is the snow? No, I don’t particularly like snow, but I am thankful to live in an area where when it does snow it melts away fairly quickly. But so far…no snow. We had the driest December in a very long time (I can’t think of the number, but 83 or was it 183?) and January is just as dry so far. We live in a desert, we need some moisture. I hope that something comes soon so we don’t have a miserable summer.

The deployment is almost over. The last time I wrote I thought I wouldn’t write again until after Mr. B got home, but here I am and he’s still not home. I am very excited about his quickly approaching return. So much so that I’m here instead of cleaning.

 

This week I explained my my son the practicalities of underwear. The conversation started because he saw my bras hanging up in the closet. “Mom, I saw your bras.” “And…?” No response, he just looked a little embarrassed maybe? “You know what boobs are for?” “Feeding babies.” “Well, when women walk their boobs move around and it hurts, so we wear bras to hold them in so that they don’t move around so much.” “Oh.” “They serve a special purpose. Just like other underwear.” He looked at me questioningly. “Your underwear helps protect your sensitive parts from your pants.” “Really?” “Yes.” I grabbed a pair of jeans. “See, look at this seam in here. Feel how rough it is? Imagine that rubbing on your sensitive parts all day.” “Oh!”

My husband laughed when I told him I explained all this. I don’t want my son to think bras are something mystical, they are anything but! I also don’t want them to be taboo. They serve a purpose. Yes, women like to wear ones that look pretty, but most women would like it if they didn’t have to wear them.

 

Conversations like that are things most people wouldn’t think about when they think about having children. They think about snot and drool, sleepless nights, diaper changes and the eventual dating…but don’t give much thought to the in-between. We were fortunate enough to have friends whose son was 12 when Little Mister was born. So we watched, and asked questions, and then mapped out our own plan of how we wanted to raise our son that included all the in-betweens. Our parenting style revolves around two basic philosophies/principles: 1) never talk down to a child and 2) never lie to a child. Most things can be squeezed into those two categories.

I may eventually explain those in further detail, but right now, I am going to have lunch with Little Mister and do some more laundry.