Plus 1

The kids and I play a game every night at bedtime. The ‘I love you more’ game. It started with the book “Guess How Much I Love You” about a baby bunny and his father. The baby says “I love you”
Daddy says “I love you more”
“I love you to the top of my ears”
“I love you to the top of my ears from the bottom of my feet.”

And so on, and so on. The girls and I now play the same game.
I love you to the stars.
I love you to the moon and stars.
I love you to the moon and stars and back.
I love you to the moon and stars and back twice.

Then the game becomes who can think of the biggest number, a hundred, a thousand, a million, a trillion, a gazillion. I am sure we even make up new names for numbers we can only imagine. The longer we play the more outrageous the names get to be.

Finally last night Tate was just repeating the names I was making up, but then adding ‘Times 2’. So in the midst of the outrageous, she had simplified it. Not to be outdone, when she took ‘Infinity’ and added ‘Times 2’ I simply added ‘Plus 1’ and that was enough for her.

I really doesn’t matter who loves who more, I’m not sure that it’s possible to gauge that. What was enough for Tate was to know that no matter how big her love was for me, I would always say ‘Plus 1’ and prove to her that no matter how much she loved me, I would always love her just a little bit more. That’s a pretty safe and secure feeling for an 8 year old.

I love you Bo, Tate and Newt, ‘Plus 1’