I'll have to settle for third best

Look at these two in the picture. That's me with Paul one of the many days I worked in his cooperative preschool last year - that's right, I volunteered many hours at his school and in fact chose this very school because I knew it would help him through his separation anxiety. I'll pause so you can admire my selflessness.

You would think my middle son would hold me in pretty high regard, right? Not according to him. Apparently, in his eyes, I'm only third best. This all came to light the other day at the playground. Paul and Gus and I were playing at Clovis Park while Ben was doing his weekly park & rec game time class. I noticed Paul watching Ben, and I said, "Ben's your favorite person in the world, huh?"

Paul said, "Yeah, and dad's my second favorite, you're my third favorite, and Gus is my fourth favorite."

What!?!? My first reaction was slightly amused surprise. I tried not to take it too seriously. These were, after all, the musings of a 5-year-old, but next, I felt the tiniest bit wounded. Third favorite? Hello, I'm Mom. That should be good for an automatic second favorite, if you ask me. I pressed him: "What do you mean"?

"Well," he said, "Dad does more sports and plays with us more, but I like you better for snuggling."

I guess if those are his criteria for parental ranking, he's got a point. I am what I am, and sporty is not it. I do wish that I could take more time to just have fun with the boys, but that seems pretty hard to do at this point. When Mark's at work, and it's just me and the boys, I tend to spend a disproportionate amount of time keeping Paul's maniacal 2-year-old brother in check. It doesn't leave me a lot of time for playing baseball or tossing around a football.

I suppose I will have to just accept my role as long-suffering, under-appreciated matron of the house. "Mother - that was the bank where we deposited all our hurts and worries," wrote T. DeWitt Talmage (I have no idea who that is, but I like it). That's me: repository of hurt and worries, snuggler, cooker of nutritious meals, doer of laundry, settler of arguments. If that's only good enough for third best, so be it. Sigh. I think I just may work on my sportiness, though. You know I'm vying to take over second place.