"Your sister certainly loves you...don't ever doubt it."

Some moments make it hard to put to words the love that wells inside a parent's heart. That is especially poignant when a tender moment is witnessed first-hand by a grandparent. This afternoon, Skye stayed with her grandparents who are visiting from Trinidad, while Donna and I picked up Hunter from the high school and ran a couple of errands.

When we returned home, we saw that Skye had made herself a pop tart and only ate half. She intended the other half for her brother, and wrote, "I split it in half and gave you the bigger piece." We couldn't wait to show it to Donna's parents. As my mother-in-law read the note, she turned to Hunter and said, "Your sister certainly loves you. . . don't ever doubt it."

I split it in half and gave you the bigger piece

Skye has evolved from an ego-centric approach to life to that of a very generous little girl, particularly when it comes to her big brother. There were times when they were younger that my faith in their having a healthy relationship was challenged. Skye was all about Skye and anyone else getting attention threatened her to the point of a melt-down. And Hunter was in a space where he was so tired of the chaos her behavior caused that he kept to himself and wanted little to do with his sister. Over the better part of two years, that has changed significantly.

Much of it I tend to attribute to Skye finally being diagnosed with hearing loss in one ear; because once she was fitted with a hearing aid, her mood and disposition did a 180 degree turn. She suddenly became pleasant to be around and learned to share her feelings with words rather than tantrums. Initially, the behavior change was something we enjoyed with baited breath. After living for years with a child that we were convinced at one point had Oppositional Defiance Disorder, it was hard to trust that the change could be permanent. Eventually, we exhaled and enjoyed the true Skye.

We are so proud of our kids. Of course, most parents are so that's not hard to understand. As parents we work hard to raise children who grow up into thoughtful, considerate kids. At times, we sometimes simply aspire to raise a child without a criminal record. How far we raise the bar is dependent on the kinds of situations our children put us in; but lately, our children continue to raise the bar of our aspirations for them.

And, when moments like this can be shared with our parents, it's that much more precious. No prompting, no cajoling, no staged interactions here. . . just a beautiful, tender moment between a brother and a sister. What parent wouldn't be struck with gratitude? I know I'm basking in it as I type and I can't wait to share the next signature moment with you all.