Change

As the sun comes out earlier and stronger and longer, I am in the house less and less. I look for every chance to get outside on a nice day. I'd be out there right now but the wind is gusting about 40 mph and I feel a little parched from being windblown for the past few hours. The greatest part of this weather trend is that I have been able to talk Eli into getting out with me- he bikes while I run. Earlier this spring, before he got this new bike with gears, we were a pretty good team. He would make comments like, "Mom, I haven't even pedalled once this whole block....I think we are going so slow that I might not have to pedal at all this time." To which I was obliged to answer, "Oh yeah, if I pushed you over, would you have to pedal to get started up again????" I mean, I can only take so much abuse as I am huffing down the block. He'd chuckle away and forget his gripes, getting back into his monologue of things he has been waiting to tell me about. We go out for about 40 minutes and he is able to keep up both sides of the conversation, which is great, because I'm breathing so hard I can barely speak. It's a lovely time. Now he has a new bike with gears and I lose him on the uphills. Or, I guess, he loses me. But he always waits at the top.
So Easter afternoon we're out enjoying a lovely late afternoon bike/run. He is chatting away about this and that and then all of the sudden veers into a conversation about the easter bunny. "Mom, where did you get those star wars guys?"
"What guys?"
"The ones the Easter Bunny brought for me." (I know, star wars guys, not so easter-y)
"Well, I wouldn't know, would I? The Easter Bunny got them."
"Mom. Cut the crap. It's not like you are going to totally crush me if you come clean about this. I mean, I think I've got this figured out".......pedal pedal pedal....."But then again, I don't really want to insult him if he is real"....pedal pedal..."then he might not bring me anything."
"What if you just insulted her anyway because she's a she???"
The double take he did right there- the fear in his eyes thinking that maybe his chips had been cashed and the bunny was now pissed at him- that made me realize that he still does believe. Despite the old 'cut the crap'.