No Hugging

Photo and Blog post are unrelated. The photo is just because I realized that I don't have many pictures of ME with Piper, since I am usually the photo-taker. And she's getting so big. So fast.

But the story is about Rowan. Well, two stories, actually.

My mom took Rowan and her cousins to a movie yesterday. When she picked Rowan up, my mom asked Rowan how she was doing and asked her what was going on in her life. Rowan replied "Oh, Grandma, I just have so much fun stuff in my life!" Isn't that cute?

And here is the other story. Rowan has always had this thing about me and Joe hugging. If she ever sees us hug, she comes right over and puts herself between us. Not joining in, mind you, but physically trying to push us apart. Is this normal? We figure that it's some sort of Oedipus thing where it's a bit of competition (for Joe's affections, for mine, too)...but it never fails. We hug, she's there at our feet, wedging herself in the middle.

Tonight when I was putting Rowan to bed, I sang her a song and told her that we had sung that song at our wedding. She got the ceremony confused with the reception, I guess, because then she wondered what dance daddy and I did at our wedding. I know she was thinking of Jenny and Mark's wedding, and their funky dance, and I'm sorry Rowan...but daddy and I will NEVER be that smooth on a dance floor! But I told her that we did have a big party, and a dance, and then asked if she wanted to see how daddy and I danced at our wedding. She giggled. Of course she did. So I got Joe, whispered to him that we had to at least TRY to be as cool as Jen and Mark, and we did a little personal dance party for Rowan while she laid in bed, muffling her smiles.

When we finished dancing, naturally, we hugged. We could feel her dilemma. She had clearly enjoyed our performance, liked seeing our affection and enjoyment of each other, right there in her own bedroom. But the hug was over the line. She got out of bed, came between us. Pushed us apart. We always try to keep hugging when she does this, and we all end up laughing while she puts forth great effort in her pushing...so at the very least, it's good for some comic relief.

We had always heard about this phenomenon where newborn babies can sense when their parents are about to/are having sex...that they can actually sense (smell?) the hormonal change in the air, and since it is in THEIR best interest to not have a sibling on the way too quickly, their reaction is to wake up and cry in hopes of thwarting the amorous behavior (we, along with many other couples we have told this theory, seem to have anecdotal evidence that supports such a theory). Anyways...maybe Rowan's attempts to break up our hugs are along those same lines. As if she is sub-consciously saying: No more babies. We are enough.

We'll see about that :)