Last night I had the unusual experience of spending the entire night with just Cooper. Grady's team got tickets to the Hitmen game as a part of their win and I asked for 3 tickets for the boys of the family. Last time I went to the hockey game with the team there was only 2 Moms and all Dads. The Moms all stayed home and enjoyed quiet time and that was exactly what I planned for myself this time around.
When it came time to leave, Cooper didn't want to go. It wasn't his team so I didn't push the issue. I simply told him that if he stayed home that he would NOT be spending the whole time on the computer which I am sure he was scheming when he asked to stay home.
So, James and Grady left and Cooper and I set the timer for his first 30 minutes of electronics while I went to shower and paint my nails. That was the one thing I really wanted to do while James was out since he will not let me paint my nails when he is home. He hates the smell.
During the four hours that the other 2 were out, Cooper and I did a crystal science kit they got for Christmas, ate supper together, cleaned his room and organized his books, played win lose or draw and finally the big win of the night, had a nerf gun fight.
He had so much fun that when the timer went off we kept playing. We started out shooting the cups as targets and they would fly off the chair. Then Cooper wanted to make videos. If you recall, my younger son wants to be a youtuber and I'm calling this his practice run. Password is nerf.
What I realized from this night with Cooper was that I don't spend enough time with my kids one on one. We do every thing together as a family of 4 or sometimes it is just me and the kids. I realized that I rarely take just one kid out or spend time at home alone with them. I feel like I've been missing out on years of special nights like the one I had with Cooper. There was no fighting, no yelling, no bad words, it was just the two of us doing things together. I know that the kids will not want to hang around with me forever so I really cherish these special moments. No, I didn't get to have the long bath that I planned, but I did get to paint my nails and used my time very wisely during the time that Cooper was watching TV. At the end of the day I am happier having spent the evening with Cooper than I would have been without him.
I hope that Grady and I will have a similar night together sooner than later.
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