The Cutest Thing Ever

I'm not one of those moms who posts blog entries titled "The Cutest Thing Ever".

Ever.

But tonight something so incredibly sweet happened that I'm able to use 'Cute' in a title, without irony. I was checking on my sleeping kids before taking the dog out for the night, and when I went into Rex's room he was sprawled sideways in his bed, with one hand up over the guardrail. (He's not what you'd call a 'normal-position' sleeper.) I straightened him out a bit and when I bent over to give him a kiss, for some reason I felt like smelling his breath. I'm not sure why -- he hadn't been drinking, obviously -- but it was something I absolutely felt compelled to do.

(Maybe it was because he will eventually have horrible man-breath and I want to inhale as much of his fresh, little-boy breath as I can while I still have time, the way I still smell his feet and kiss his toes for fun because I know it's just a matter of time before they begin to give off that rancid cheese-smell and are rife with fungus. You won't catch my face anywhere near those feet once he hits puberty, that I guarantee.)

Anyway, as I inhaled his sweet breath tonight my nostrils got a little too close to his lips. Without waking up, he opened his mouth, stuck out his tongue and tried to latch on to the tip of my nose. He was trying to nurse! The boy has been weaned for two years (and was I glad when that ship had finally sailed, let me tell you) and still, even with his big boy bed, preschool friends and mastery of stand-up peeing firmly under his belt, his mouth remembers how to suckle. It was so adorable I had to try it again. I just had to.

This time when I touched my nose to his lips, he opened his mouth even wider and tried to get most of my nose into his mouth, again without waking up. I was enchanted. It was like getting a glimpse of my baby again, without all the mess and hassle of actual breastfeeding. I could have kept playing this game all night.

The third time I tried it, Rex spit at me, groaned and rolled over. So much for nostalgia. It was cute while it lasted; I'll even go as far as to say it warmed my heart. Got me all happy and tingly for a moment. But I'm fairly sure that if I try it again I'll get my nose bitten by Rex's huge and super sharp choppers, so I'm not going to risk it.