Life support

Mark and I spend lots of time discussing family and friends. I'm always telling him how lucky we are to have so much love and support around us, and how important it is that we, in turn, reciprocate. But he's 8, and doesn't always grasp that concept.

This weekend was a fine example. We had a birthday barbecue for my brother Scott, and spent Saturday shopping for food. Mark didn't care much about steaks or chicken, and I reminded him that this weekend was about Uncle Scott, not about Mark.

But when it came to the cake, Mark was quite supportive. He was downright enthusiastic, but for all the wrong reasons.

"Let's get Uncle Scott a Spider-Man cake!" he shouted excitedly.

Cue Teachable Moment, number 5,676. "Yes, that does look good," I agreed. "But does Uncle Scott really like Spider-Man? Or do you like Spider-Man?"

"I like Spider-Man!" Mark answered, happily.

"And is it your birthday, or Uncle Scott's?"

"Uncle Scott's," he answered. "Oh, that reminds me. For my birthday, I want a--"

I held up my hand to stop him. "Your birthday's not until February. We're talking about Uncle Scott's birthday. Now pick out a cake he would like."

And so we settled on a chocolate cake. Which prompted Mark to grab some Scooby-Doo cake top decorations. I stared at him intensely, willing him to read my mind.

"Oh, wait a minute...Uncle Scott doesn't like Scooby-Doo, I do," Mark said, responding to my Jedi mind trick. I thought, Good boy! Now we're getting somewhere. Which meant losing the Scooby-Doo stuff and choosing beer can shaped candles instead, which did sound more like Uncle Scott (and were a big hit!).

Sunday morning gave us another opportunity to show support. Vicki and Randi walked their first half-marathon ever, and we went to cheer them on. Monica and I stood by the course, scanning the crowd of walkers for them. Edra and Sal waited patiently by the curb. Mark, ever the charming little man, was bored and not afraid to let us know. He pledged his support in a completely different way, which looked like this:

I didn't let it bother me. "You don't have to be happy now," I warned. "But I better see some excitement when we see Vic and Randi!"

And then, suddenly, they appeared. "There they are!" Monica shouted, and we started cheering. They smiled, waved, and kept on walking.

I was so proud of them, and brought my camera to capture the happy moment. Here's what it looked like:

For the record, yes, Mark did stand and cheer when they walked past. Yes, Uncle Scott loved the beer-shaped candles. And yes, I deemed Teachable Moment 5,676 a success--at least until the next birthday celebration, or Teachable Moment 5,677, whichever comes first.