Anson is a shrewd negotiator. He likes to bargain for extra time in the bathtub, the right kinds of snacks, the number of bites left at dinner, another story during the bedtime routine.
But one of the things that makes me saddest in this whole wide world is when Anson trades songs and backrubs (a nightly tradition) for an extra story.
Oh, I just love songs and backrubs. Trading for “My Truck is Stuck” just doesn’t seem like a real smart move, and yet from time to time, Anson will legitimately prefer “Who Pooped in the Sonoran Desert” to my dulcet vocals and soothing back-scratches.
Tonight, he managed to bargain for both – an extra story, AND songs and back-scratches.
The normal tune is “With Anson in the Family,” but lately he has requested “Jesus Loves Me.” But tonight he wanted the classic, and I sang it to him happily.
Because of a lot of things going on in life right now, Anson in the Family (both the song and just the day-to-day reality of what it means to have him in our family) has meant something extra special to me. Now that he’s a little boy (who knows words!!), he’s become a real contributor to the family dialogue, to the Family Rules and traditions and norms we are establishing. He’s vocal about things he likes, he’s occasionally accommodating on the non-negotiables that he doesn’t much care for, and he generally LOVES everybody in this family.
That’s the thing that’s getting me lately. That juicy squishy love that he oozes on the regular.
We went out for dinner the other night, and there was a family with a little boy (probably a few years older than Anson) seated at the table next to ours. Anson was very curious about this little boy, and mentioned several times over the course of our dinner that he would like to go over and make friends with him.
“What would you say to him?” Zeb asked Anson, and I was genuinely curious to hear the answer.
“That I love him.”
“Whoa buddy. Might be coming in a little hot, there.”
Dropping off the kids at daycare the other day, Anson’s teacher told me how much she enjoys story time because Anson will inevitably come up to her, snuggle up to her, and let her know he loves her.
This is what I’m talking about, people. This little boy is a lover, man! He enjoys the company of others, certainly, but he genuinely cares about people, too. He wants to be loved, sure, but he is also trying to make sure you know how special and important you are. He’s guileless in his lovingness, and it is priceless.
There’s truly not much better than Anson in our Family.
Anson's Antics 
Such a precious kiddo, so very glad he’s part of our family-we are privileged to be recipients of his love!