Morning Breath

What is your favorite scent? Turkey roasting in the oven on Thanksgiving day is towards the top of my list, but not number one. Boxwood bushes are up there, too, as is a freshly cut Christmas tree. But none of these is my favorite.

My favorite scent has to be the smell of my little kids as soon as they wake up in the morning. (Let me qualify this by saying that it applies only to little kids under 4. After that they begin to develop dragon breath and stinky farts.)

My favorite scent is not a purified perfume mind you-- no baby talc or lotion. No, it’s a mixture of things: sour morning breath, warm, sleepy neck, remnant peanut butter behind an ear, the especially soft palms of their hands, even the faint waft of a pee-filled diaper. They all intermingle to produce the sweetest, most intoxicating baby-scent.

In the mornings, I just want to stay in my big bed, snuggled under the covers, nuzzling the twins, smelling their morning breath, kissing their soft, little necks and hands, looking at their faces. This is my elixir for the stress and worries that lurk out there-- outside of my bedroom door.