Sometimes little messages are sent but we get so busy that we miss them. And every once in a while, we may get a tap on the shoulder, or in my case a smack upside your head.

I will have to be honest, my youngest step son has been giving me fits. Every Christmas Cody has issues, some of them legendary, and this year is no different. I don’t know why and after combining my 36 years of parental expertise and my husband’s 29, we are still at a loss how to fix it. So, I came down hard. I grounded him. No amenities at the Himes household. As any parent knows, grounding means that you, the adult, are also grounded. And be that as it may, I stuck with it and even my marshmallow husband held the line. 

Just when I decided that I needed a wart on my chin to complete my evil step mother persona, something amazing happened. One of those little messages.

I have a self-start on my vehicle, which is fabulous when it’s snowing and the wind is blowing 60 mph. I made my husband show me how to work it this morning, and you know what? It worked every time. So, I leisurely got up. Took a shower. Got Cody off to school. And then fully confident, I pushed the button on the key fob.... and nothing. 8 times I tried. And 8 times I failed. REALLY. I was not pleased. And I was very vocal about my displeasure. My dogs and cats were not impressed either. I’m fairly sure it was not because of my vehicle malfunction. 

I stomped out to my cold, icy vehicle, started it and looked in my rear view mirror as I slid out of my driveway. And then I braked. Written in a child’s hand, in the snow covering my back window was my message.  “Love Cody”. If I had been able to start my car, the heat would have melted the pure message away and I would have never known. 

I will never accept disrespect but I can say that I will be a little more observant for those little messages. And yes, Cody received a reprieve. Off the naughty list and back to the nice. Just where he needs to be.