Fathers and Sons

I had a few "moments" this weekend. Moments that you just want to pause life and soak up everything for as long as possible. They all had to do with my boys being completely in love with their dad. And they should be, because he's the most involved and loving father I've ever come across in my lifetime and he'd gladly spend every waking moment with them if he could.

Now that we live so close to work in Austin, Cort rides his bike to and from work each day. Every day when he rolls up on his bike around 6 pm, the boys lose their minds. You'd think someone had just rolled up in a dump truck offering to give them the wheels. The volume in the house goes up ten notches and they are jumping and screaming they're so excited for him to be home.

Will especially needs an abundance of "Dad time". It may be my imagination, but I notice a significant difference in how well Will is able to regulate his body, with how much time he has with Cort (other things also factor in, like eating and sleeping, but Dad is definitely part of the Big 3). For the last 2 weeks, on Thursday night Will has mentioned that tomorrow is Saturday and Dad doesn't have to go to work and how excited he is for all the things they can do together. Sadly, we have to tell him it won't be Saturday for another day and he bawls.

A few weeks ago, the boys and I were at the pool and Duke fell and hit his forehead on a picnic table. He needed stitches, so we left and I called Cort on the way home to debrief him. We ran over and picked him up from work, he gave Duke a quick blessing and then stayed with Will at home while I was with Duke at the urgent care. It was so streamlined, and simple, for something that can be such a hassle. I remembered that this was why we moved to Austin, so Cort could be available for instances just like this. I would have never been able to even ask for him to come home in DC because of logistics, which is probably why this sort of thing never happened to us while we lived there. Tomorrow is Will's IEP meeting and I'll run over and pick up Cort and we can go to the meeting together and then I'll drop him back off. Working two miles from home is about the best thing in the entire world.
Now that we have it, I don't think I could ever live without him being so conveniently close by. Sometimes after I pick up Will from school, we go over and say hi to Dad and Will can tell him about his day at school.

On Friday it was blazing hot and we went to the pool that night. Cort swims with both the boys while I sit in the shallow end like a beached whale. There is a big blue water slide that the boys aren't tall enough to go on, but they always want Cort to go on it. They stand by and watch him as he goes down and always makes a goofy face as he lands in the water. The boys think its the greatest thing ever. I wish I could record it. Their Dad is definitely their hero.

Some unfortunate things happened this weekend. Things that made us so angry and confused by others actions, but as I had these moments I remembered that this little family of mine is all that matters. Everything else is just noise. Will and Duke love their lives and they are so happy and know they are loved.

I love Cortney for a lot of reasons, but lately I just can't get enough of his love for the boys. I don't think I could even think of anything he could do better as a dad. He always hugs and kisses them and tells them how much he loves being their dad and how proud he is of them. I love that he's so affectionate with them. These boys are going to have a lifetime of great memories with him.

*Cort took Will swimming for a few hours yesterday while Duke and I took naps. So wonderful.