Little Hands

This morning Cole went potty and washed his hands all by himself. I was in the kitchen waiting for the usual "Mommy, I need you," but it never came. Instead I heard him singing on the potty, then heard the water running in the sink.

At first I was thrilled because it is a real pain to take him everytime. And, since Jay always follows along, handwashing turns into a big ordeal with fights over the stool, space at the sink, etc, etc.

But this afternoon when all three of us trudged to the bathroom and I washed their hands, I realized that I will miss this little routine. It's about the only time I get to hold Cole's hands anymore. While rubbing on the soap, I noticed how long and slender his fingers have become and how he's losing the soft ring of baby fat around his wrists. And I wondered how many more times I'll be allowed to help him like this.

My days of washing Jay's hands may be numbered also since he is determined to do everything Cole does. So this time I held onto his soft, slippery hands a little longer and felt his pudgy palms and fingers before he squirmed away. Then I realized that I probably will have lots more hand washing times with Jay because he will be the boy who claims to have washed his hands while they are still caked with dirt!