One of the goals on my personal mission statement is to:

This is a beautiful place to live, and I appreciate having this trail so close to our home.  After the long, hard winter we just endured, I really love being outside and seeing everything coming back to life; however, I’m not looking forward to the mosquitoes that I know will infiltrate in the coming weeks.  Right now, the weather is perfect and it’s bug free!

Walking with a three-year-old is quite an experience.  I don’t get to walk as fast as I normally would like.  It’s not quite as much of a work-out as it is when I walk by myself, but there’s so much more that I notice when I walk with Aaron.  He finds interest in what I think is mundane.  He needs to stop and look at the grass, the “fuzzies” (i.e. dandelions), and the pretty rocks.  He likes to stop to listen to the birdies sing, and of course, he stops to smell the flowers.  And it’s really fun to bring a magnifying glass and make things bigger.

My favorite times are when we’re on the return journey home.  There is usually a moment when Aaron reaches over to hold my hand.  It is so precious to me, and I don’t take it for granted knowing that there will come a time when he won’t.  One time he reached out for my hand and used it to wipe his nose, “Ew.  Ick!”  and then we laughed about it the rest of the way home!  We talk about which jammies he’s going to wear.  Should he wear the star jammies or the monkey jammies?  Most of the time we are quiet as we walk along enjoying the breeze and saying hello to the people we pass.  My prayer is that these special times will create special memories for him (as they have for me), and that Aaron will walk in the glory and the beauty of the Lord for the rest of his life.