Bad Habits

We all have them.

They annoy those around us.

Heck, sometimes they annoy the actual person.

We pick them up from others, usually those close to us. As in, those we live with, or look up to.

And when I say "look up to", I mean it literally. We have a couple of people in this house who are currently more like sponges. Every little habi...I mean mannerism is absorbed and later squeezed back out.

As parents, Justin and I try to be conscious of this, but it is hard. My bad habits are cracking my bones (really gross), playing with my earrings, pulling out gray hairs (yes, I have them and anyone who knows me well has seen them so don't try to deny it!), and I'm sure Justin would add that I have a habit of nagging. Don't most husbands say this about their wife?

Anyway, back to the point, Justin has habits too. One of them is pacing while on the phone. And another, that I can't stand, is spitting while he is stressed. So that means, if he's on an important phone call, he goes outside (because we have two noisy children), paces the driveway and sidewalk and then spits. I'm talking like every three words. He also does this when we are walking back to the car after the Dawgs have lost. I understand. It's like you have a bad taste in your mouth and you want to get rid of it.

But....

There are little eyes looking up at him and following every move. When Justin heads outside for those phone calls, he often gets a little visitor. A little visitor who adores him and wants to do everything like him, who repeats what he repeats, and when he thinks no one is looking...

Walks to the front porch....

And spits on the sidewalk.

(I was upstairs on the catwalk and saw him through the window panes of the front door. All I could think was, "he looks JUST like Justin except that it's cute when he does it." One day, these bad habits will drive his wife crazy. Oh well. I'll tell her, this one, he got from his father.)