You know I love my children. Until I had children, I didn't realize I had such a capacity for love. I mean, I've always loved kids, but my own children..! Oh, the amazing, profound intensity of it!

This love feels so blinding that sometimes I have to stop and ask myself if these little people might be the proverbial "face only a mother could love." Because, you know, people everywhere tell me how beautiful my children are. (I can tell you this without shame, because I know their looks really have nothing to do with me, in the sense that other than donating several genes, I didn't have anything to do with the way they look. Their looks are definitely out of my control.) Of course, I'm the mother, so I believe they are the most beautiful of God's creations. But I wonder if people give compliments just to be polite, or if, in general, people think babies and kids are cute so they make those sorts of comments.

Mind you, I'm not fishing for compliments, here. This is just something that pops into my head from time to time, particularly when I'm in line at Wal-Mart and observe one stranger compliment another stranger's average-looking baby. (I never said I was nice all the time!) I stand there and think, 'hm, if she thinks that kid is cute, which it obviously isn't, then why is she saying that?!' Which leads me to wonder if this same lady in line would have the same compliments for my kids, which leads me to think maybe my own kids are just average kids, after all.

Which part of me really hopes is true, because I don't need all kinds of headaches and worries when it comes time for dating! Although, in my experience, plain, average, and ugly people do end up on dates. I consider myself to be fairly average in the looks department, and I even ended up married! Which says a lot for personality, I guess.

So in the end, I'm hoping to influence in some positive way, my children's behavior, attitude, personality... let's just call it social skills. And, not to brag (OK, to brag a little bit), I do get a lot of compliments from strangers on my children's manners. I teach them to have actual conversation with adults, I demonstrate and practice phone skills with them, we go over table manners regularly and consistently. We go beyond the 'please' and 'thank you', to shaking hands properly, making eye contact, answering adults' questions, and even something as simple as smiling.

Recently, yet another mother asked if she could send her child to my house to learn some manners. The kids and I are currently planning an official "Bourget Bootcamp" website. They have lots of ideas for video instruction (some of which may get me hauled off by the Department for Child Welfare) and are eager to demonstrate for other children and parents how we go about the teaching/learning process here at Chez Bourget. I think they want other kids to know it's possible to be mature and still be a kid (although maybe they're just eager to have me hauled off).

At any rate, I do love my kids, inside and out. And honestly, I know they are some good lookin' people.