As I would imagine happens to all parents, I frequently find myself taking one or the other of the boys off on errands. Sometimes it just makes more sense to split up than to move about as a single family unit. Unfortunately, the kids often don’t understand this. Their common response to me taking them away from their momma is to want their momma.

Very early on, I discovered that forcing a crying toddler into the car can be very unpleasant. I especially feel bad when they’re screaming “but I just want momma!”, or some other such completely reasonable request.

So I started a counter-offensive to try to head off this problem. A year or so ago, I started saying “it’s just you and me, kiddo!” to C when he and I were going somewhere by ourselves. I’ve been doing it ever since, and I must admit that it has really worked well. A typical outing will start like this:

C, we have to shopping.
“No! I want to stay here! I want momma! I don’t want to -”
But it’s just you and me, kiddo! You and me!
“Oh. Okay. It’s just you and me, kiddo. Just you and me.”

…and we’re off to the car.

The other day as I was driving, he called out from his car seat “Daddy, it’s just you and me, kiddo!”

That’s right, big guy. Just you and me.

“Do you know what that means?”

Um… I think so. What?

“It means just you and just me. Just you and me. It’s just you and me, kiddo!” He held his hands over his head in triumph. I’m still not sure what he was trying to say, but for some reason I got all choked up.

It’s just you and me, kiddo. Just you and me.

Er…and Momma and N, too, of course.