"Silly old bear!"

Did you know that I am part bear? Why, just last week, I devoured my lunch and then pondered over how I am sometimes as monstrously grouchy and unpredictable as a bear in the spring, leaving my careworn husband to guess at whether I'll shake off hibernation by sitting in a flowery field eating honey - or tear apart his car with him inside while looking for a crusty morsel hidden under the back seat. Sometimes I am both, perhaps decidedly more honey than not, (hopefully).

Did you know, also, that I am a cantakerous old mama bear? Why, just last week, my toddling tot broke our kitchen drawer and was met by the not-so-sweet cacophony of an angry Dada who set to yelling at said child and then fixing said drawer. I protected myself and that Dada I live with from an angry bear attack by retreating into emotional, proximal, and intellectual distance. And also? Some sleep.

Did you even know that I am sooooo The Mom but sometimes I am not soooo The Wife? Why, just last week, after an afternoon hibernation, I awoke to find my husband excited to see me! Still under the influence of weariness (no excuse!), I accused him of being "an insect on crack". Then, feeling badly, I went and sat on the couch next to him. On purpose. Most decidedly, in fact. I looked at his eyes and kissed his lips and touched his freshly Sunday-shaven face with my fingertips. I do really like that guy!

Did you know that it is possible to teach a middle-aged bear new tricks? Why, just last week, I learned that kissing solves a hundred ills. And that perhaps I should take a "train the trainer" approach to my husband's obstreperous parenting style? Teach him what he needs to remember, as it were?

[Title quote is from "Winnie the Pooh"]