First Date

I never intended for it to be a date.  I was just trying to get him out of the house for a few hours to give his Daddy a break as he recovered from surgery.  His big brother and I have been going out on dates for two and a half years now, but since he's never expressed interest (how could he?), I've never taken him out.  I mean, it's not like we could sit and chat together over a bowl of ice cream.

As I buckled him into his car seat and drove away, my only thought was for his father.  Even as we arrived at the park and gardens, I wondered how long he would last before desiring to return to the comforts of home. But as it turned out, our afternoon together was delightfully lovely.

With no one to slow us down, we enjoyed exploring the gardens at a rapid pace, running down the paths and scarcely noticing the beautiful flowers alongside us.  We studied the bridges and searched for the trickles of water underneath them, inspected the stones placed beside the walkways, and danced in the fountains.  Always running, just knowing the other was there to share the moment with us, we preferred the paved walkways as they lent themselves to greater speed and less likelihood of falling from unbalanced strides.

When we were thirsty we stopped for a shared apple juice, which hit the spot perfectly.

On the way home, I thanked God for giving me such a perfect first date with my son. Spending time with just him allowed me to enjoy his speed without trying to slow him down to fit the pace of our family.  Instead of constantly encouraging him to stretch his attention span, I explored the park with him at his preferred tempo and found it to be absolutely delightful.