I, Marshmallow

About a month or so ago, my son's girlfriend appeared at our door wearing a gorgeous white jacket, waist length with a big hood edged in faux fur. It really was beautiful and I not only told her how much I loved it, I also made her hand it to me so I could try it on.

A few days later my son and his girlfriend bounded up our stairs to find me,

"Mommy!" Kim exclaimed (yep, she calls me mommy and yep, I melt each time..) I looked up and the both of them were beaming. I noticed they had a very large bag in tow.

"Oh, guys, you didn't buy me something again, did you? I love you both but please don't spend your money on me."

They looked so crestfallen that I wished I had just kept my mouth shut.

'..But give it to me!" I grabbed it out of Kim's hands and, again, they beamed. Inside the bag was a coat, identical to the one I had admired on Kim.

"You liked it so much that we put our money together and bought you one." These two kids stood there looking soo proud of themselves.

I put it on and modeled it for them and gave them huge hugs. (I also offered to reimburse them for the cost of the coat, but they wouldn't hear of it, bless there hearts.)

Now, we are in the throes of an Arctic cold snap. I live in the deep south and we are not used to this sort of constant brutal cold weather. But, I am as snug as a bug in a rug while wearing my new white, puffy coat with the faux fur on the hood.
I was heading out the door recently when my son came out of his room and down the stairs.

"Ma! You look like such a cutey patootey in that coat!"

I stared at him for a sec.
"Ok, kid, what do you want?"
"Nothing. You just look so cute in that coat."

Well, that made my morning. When your 20 year old son tells you that you look cute, you must look, well, cute! I felt good. Real good. Until I ran into Robert.

Robert is this sweetheart kid I know who went to school with my kid.

"Hey Beej! Howya doin'?"

"I'm good Robert." I turned around in a full circle."How do I look in my new coat Ray and Kim bought me?"

Robert studied me thoughtfully.

"You look like a marshmallow." he started to walk away. "Gotta go to work. See you later."

I watched him walk away.

"You don't think I look like a cutey patootey?"

"You look like a marshmallow, all puffy and stuff." he says over his shoulder to me.

that night I enter my door and my son is standing there with a bag of cookies in his hand.

"Hey, mom."

"Hey..I saw Robert today. He said I look like a marshmallow in this coat."

My son grabs another cookie out of the bag.

"Well, yeah but you re a cute marshmallow."

Just goes to show you, pride truly does come before a fall. But, and this is a big but..over the last week I may resemble a marshmallow...BUT!...if so, I am a roasted one.. my new coat keeps me warm' And that's good enough for me.