Recently, our family rewatched The Avengers: Endgame, and one of my favorite moments is when Iron Man is putting his daughter to bed, and she says, “I love you 3000.” This heartfelt phrase became a symbol of the deep bond between parent and child. It made me reflect on a moment with my youngest that still stands out in our relationship today. It’s not just about love but about being seen—feeling noticed, even when my back is turned or when I’m not physically present. This concept has stayed with me, much like that powerful line from the movie.
A Laugh That Brings Us Closer: Parenting Moments with My Youngest
Parenting with humor has always been a part of our family dynamic. My youngest child has a gift for making me laugh—whether it’s with his sweet, curious view of the world as a kindergartener or his good-natured, quick-witted responses now that he’s older. But there’s one moment from when he was five that stands out—a time when his innocent wonder left me both amused and touched.
The “Superpower” Every Parent Knows
There’s something magical about a little one’s astonishment when a parent knows exactly what they’re up to, even with their back turned. This happened one evening when I made cookies for my kids. I had given my little one a couple of warm cookies and a frosty glass of milk. He happily dunked his cookies into the milk while playing with his cars. I had moved to another part of the room with my back to the kitchen when everything went quiet. That silence—the kind of quiet every parent recognizes—was deafening. The kind that signals something is happening, something that requires attention.
Without turning around, I knew he was sneakily walking toward the plate of cookies on the counter, eyes fixed on me, hoping to grab a third cookie to finish off the milk in his glass. As the silence stretched, just as he was about to reach for a cookie, I calmly spoke, “I hope you’re not grabbing another cookie.”
There was a brief moment of stunned silence. He paused, knowing he had been watching me the whole time, and yet, despite never turning around, I somehow knew exactly what he was doing. His sweet, 5-year-old voice, now filled with utter amazement, asked, “How did you know?” Without skipping a beat, I said, “All Mommies have eyes on the back of their head.” He fell silent, processing the idea, and then went back to playing with his car, likely pondering how my “parent superpower” worked.
The Eyes on the Back of My Head: A Parenting Superpower
A few nights later, as he settled into bed, he started playing with my hair—a familiar habit he’s had since he was a baby. But this time, he gently maneuvered my hair around, almost as if trying to uncover something hidden. Concerned about tangles, I reached back to tickle his side to get him to stop and asked, “What are you doing?” With a thoughtful pause, he replied, “I’m trying to find the eyes on the back of your head! I can’t see any!”
I chuckled and, without missing a beat, said, “The eyes only appear when I need them. They’re a parent superpower.” He fell silent for a moment, needing time to process this new information. For a long time, I’m sure he didn’t know what to believe. A mom with eyes on the back of her head sounded pretty cool—though a little crazy, too. Eventually, he dropped the subject, but now, as he approaches his teen years when the topic comes up, it’s met with playful mockery. He still doesn’t know how I knew, but he’s pretty sure my “second set of eyes” doesn’t actually exist.
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