Sharing ice cream with my son

Yesterday evening River sat in a cardboard box (that previously held
my newly arrived radio/CD player/ipod dock – yay!). I sat nearby and
we alternated bites of chocolate peanut butter ice cream. One for me,
one for him.

He learned to say the word “helado” (Spanish for ice cream), he seemed
to enjoy the taste, and I felt like we enjoyed a shared happy moment.

As I fed him the (small) bites of ice cream, I thought back to a year
or so before, when I wouldn’t consider giving him sweets. I still
don’t give him many. Mainly when I’m eating them and I don’t think
it’s fair to deny him what I’m enjoying.

But mostly, I think to myself, what if he happened to die in an
accident? How would I feel if I’d never let him experience the joy of
ice cream (to me, it’s one of life’s great joys)? I’d feel horrible.
So, while we still focus on healthy foods and a healthy lifestyle,
I’ve moved off of my early motherhood absolutism and let him revel a
bit in the delicious indulgences of life.