Adoring Daddy

The last several months have brought about subtle, yet significant changes in Jacob.  I don't know if it's because he's actually changing, or if, because of all the things going on with Elisha, I've begun to notice and appreciate the little things in life.

The biggest thing, for me, has been how Jacob has changed from being completely self-involved, to slowly incorporate others into his list of concerns.  In the past, Jake would run from activity to activity, with me in his wake trying to keep up.

 But now, he tends to want me to be a part of his adventure, searching me out so that he can grab my hand, and pull me with him to discover the flowers growing outside, or to watch his favorite show, or to practice Gemiini together.

The other week, however, it truly hit home as our family went to play tennis for the first time this season.  K.C. piled me, Nathan, Courtney, and Jacob in the car and took us to the high school's tennis courts, which (thankfully) have a very high chain link fence with gates that latch closed.  This allowed me to not worry quite so much about Jacob and gave him the impression of freedom to run as he chose.

I very much expected him to run through all of the tennis courts, chasing after balls, gleefully playing and exploring by himself.  However, this night, he stayed pretty close to his daddy's side.

K.C. offered him a tennis racket, which Jacob wheeled with pride, teetering from side to side as he tried to compensate for the extra weight, and grinning from ear to ear.  He'd stand right next to his dad, trying to mimic his stance, looking up occasionally to make sure he had his legs and hands right, then swinging at any oncoming balls within 5 feet of him.

Nathan would toss a ball over the net, and Jacob would grin, run after it, swing-- usually missing, and run after the ball.  Once the ball was retrieved, he'd run back to his dad, hand it to him, and 'assume the position', taking great care to mimic KC's stance.

It was absolutely adorable!  What a heart-warming experience to see Jacob and KC playing together, and having fun.  In a life full of chaos and running to and fro, it's a tender moment, that makes me smile, even now, in retrospect.

Those are the moments worth living for.