The Sweetest 4-Letter Word

Mama.

Nate said it for the first time today.

DH and I have been coaxing him relentlessly for ages to indulge us with a "mama" or "dada" but he declined. Heck, if I had known that K.mart would serve as his vocabulary muse , I would have driven him there months ago.

My mom and I decided to take a trip to the discount store to pick up some Easter goodies and get out of the house on such an unusually warm March day. After enduring aisles upon aisles of baskets, candy, gift wrap and other seasonal merchandise, Nate grew tired and fussy. Seated in the shopping cart, he reached up to me with both arms, tears in his eyes and pleaded, "mama". I was immediately taken aback. It must have been a fluke, I thought. Even though my mother heard it twenty feet away. It couldn't possibly be real, could it?

I picked him up and whispered in his ear, "mama". He repeated it back to me, "mama". We bantered back and forth several times and each time, he repeated my words verbatim. He was grinning ear to ear, as if he knew how proud I was of him.

It just lit me up inside like nothing else. It touched my heart and made me feel immense joy I hadn't felt since his first smile and laugh. I always assumed "dada" would be the first word since it was easier to roll off the tongue. Touche, little man, touche.

I'm not 100% positive that he identified me as "mama" or if he was babbling and spouted off the long-awaited word simply by accident but regardless, it was spectacular. I wish I could clone that moment in the middle of K.mart. And, boy, I never thought I'd say that.

Just when I think I couldn't possibly love this little guy more, I find one more thing to stretch those heartstrings.

As if there were any doubt. I love you, my Sunshine.