Great Day!

Today was one of those days that I will never forget. I know that some day I'll look back on May 25 with a smile on my face. Shawna's been out of town since Friday morning as her and her sister drove to Deming, NM to see their grandmother for Memorial Day Weekend. So, that left me and Austin at home alone.

After church and lunch and a nap, Austin and I swam in the pool for a solid hour. He had so much fun jumping off the side of the pool and into my arms. After every jump, he would laugh hysterically and say, "One more time?" Of course, my answer was always yes! He even practiced swimming and did a great job of kicking his feet and sticking his arms straight out while I balanced him with my arms under his stomach. Finally, he wore himself out and we went inside for a macaroni and cheese dinner with some lunch meat and peaches. He ate like a horse. Immediately after eating, he asked, "Wok?", which in 22-month old language translates into "Walk?" So, we put on our tennis shoes and took off for a walk. It took us 68 minutes to walk to the next street and back. He took his time and picked up every rock and pointed out every bug he saw. He did his best to sneak up on each bird he saw on the ground but seemed content when it would fly off before he could get within 20 feet of it. He got excited every time we encountered a neighbor out walking their dog and managed to spend 5 minutes running up and down a sand pile in the yard of a new house being built behind ours. I just watched him and soaked every bit of it in knowing that some day I will wonder what happened to my little boy when he wants to spend all of his time at the ball park or hanging out with his friends, not his old man! I couldn't help but think maybe that's what Jesus feels like when we get to heaven. Does He just walk beside us as and soak it all in when we are in awe of everything around us and get excited about the little things?

I don't know about that but today was one of those days where I was so thankful to be a father to one of the greatest little kids in the world. Here are a few recent pictures of Austin.