Are You There God? It’s Me Tony…What’s Happening To Me!?

I’m not fond of that one sappy country song about butterfly kisses or even that one about that kid getting the hi-heel shoes for his mom on Christmas (or something like that.)
Some parents like those emotional things, but me – I’ve never really considered myself an emotional parent. But oddly enough I’ve been coming across those two songs a lot more than usual the last few weeks while flipping through the radio late at night during those “love song” dedications on the local adult contemporary station (you know the ones where love struck stalkers usually call to tell their neighbor that they’ve been going through their trash and they’ve kidnapped the cat…)

Now imagine me getting a little sentimental when the wife was gone (at her MBA orientation) and my daughter was cooking for me in her play kitchen. On the menu: strawberry tea, “crackcorn” (her word for popcorn) sushi, ice cream, and “bloop” (her word for soup) edamame. I was enjoying my exotic dishes all while watching her spout out all kinds of funny things moving around like she was on Iron Chef. I can’t even begin to explain how much I enjoy playing with her and listening to her version of the adult world; she completely fascinates me.

Then it happened -- that song popped jumped into my head:

… She was sent here from heaven and she's daddy's little girl… …She's looking like her mama a little more everyday One part woman, the other part girl… She'll change her name today. She'll make a promise and I'll give her away….

(Freakin’ A -- How much of this song do I know anyway…?!)

“What’s?…What’s happening to me? (staring at my hands like I was turning into the Hulk,... or Sally Field.)

Then I looked at her, got a little shaky in the knees, thinking about how one day my little girl will be all grown up and I wondered if she’ll remember times like this (maybe there was estrogen in that tea? Or maybe I’ve watched one too many Lifetime movies...)

“Look! Daddy! Colonel’s Chicken!” – YUMMY!”

My daughter pulled out her toy KFC bucket from the toy fridge. I snapped out of it.

((big smile))

It’s times like this I’m going to remember forever (And I’m changing the radio station presets.)

Snails and ice creamChicken SushiEdemame BloopThe Colonel's Finest