Love you too, kid.

For Christmas, I was the happy recipient of Mario Kart for my Wii. (Steve wanted to get me a Wii Fit, but for some reason, he refuses to do any Christmas shopping until he's done school and on holidays. This year, that left him with at least one weekend in which to shop. I did lots better than the year school got out on the 23rd - that year, I got a stocking filled with Stag Shop goodies. Fun, but you know, not really what I want to share with others when the topic of "what I got for Christmas" comes up! Anyway, birthday is in March and Wii Fit will be my gift.)

Happily, Owen enjoys watching Mario Kart racing. It's a lot more fun than Treehouse! Unfortunately for Owen, daddy is a much better racer than mommy, so when he watches me he gets a little frustrated. Tonight he was feeling extra cuddly, and was snuggled up next to me while I played. I was the Princess (he likes to select our characters. I'm always the Princess. Steve is usually the Koopa Troopa. Make of that what you will.) He is so funny, cheering me on. "Look out for the caterpillars, Mommy!" he yells. "Hang on, little bananas!" he says as I trail some "weapons" behind my player. "Oh Mommy, you missed the treat box." "Mommy, I wish you wouldn't fall in the lava."

I was playing a series of races I haven't done much of, and wasn't doing well at all. With every bad move, he'd sigh, snuggle closer and tell me "I love you, Mommy." I was feeling pretty good about myself, even if I was playing horribly. Pretty good, that is, until the end of the game, when I ended up coming in fourth, and not being awarded any of the "Piston cups", as he calls them.

"Well, I didn't win, but I think fourth place is still pretty good, what do you think?" I asked him. He looks up at me with his cherubic little face, and says: "Maybe Daddy should race now."