Footprints in the snow

It snowed this morning. Big, huge, enormous, beautiful flakes. It was unbelievable! Good thing it was so pretty, because snow is not at the top of my "things I want to see" list on March 31st, that's for sure. Joey wanted to walk to preschool . . . as he often does. My dad {who is back from his trip to Connecticut} stopped over this morning, so he stayed here with Anna while Joe and I had a little mommy-little guy bonding time on the walk to school.

You can't see your own footprints if you are walking . . . they are behind you. I gave no thought to the fact that we were even making footprints as we walked down the block holding hands and chatting about important things like how it would be better if my coat had a hood {it had stopped snowing and now was dripping huge drops of wetness on my head from the trees above . . . Joe had a hood and was able to stay dry}. We chatted about some other stuff too . . . stuff I don't even remember, but if you know Joe {and me!} there wasn't much silence on the way. We got to school, shed his coat, pinned on his name tag, I asked for a kiss that I didn't get {some days he LOVES kisses, some days he tips his head down and will only let me "kiss the hair" and some days I just get nothin' at all! It all depends on his mood}, said I loved him and I'd see him in a couple hours and headed back down the block to our house.

About halfway down the block where the snow was still in tact and hadn't yet turned to slop you could still see our footprints. Two of his for every one of mine! It made me kind of happy and sad {and other feelings I don't even have words for} all at once to see those footprints. Side by side. I was kind of flooded with thoughts . . . he had to make 2 steps for every 1 I made: did I go slow enough? or was I kind of pulling him along . . . in a hurry to get him to school and then back home again to get some stuff done? How long will he want to walk with me, holding hands? {I'm hoping at least 6 more years, since Jacob still likes it . . . but Joe isn't Jake so you never know!} One day he will out stride me! The "Footprints" poem came to mind too. It was a "moment" for me. I don't know what else to say about it than that. I wish I had had a camera so that I could have snapped a picture of our footprints there together in the snow on Ryan Avenue. But I didn't and now they are all melted. I hope that I will be able to keep the picture of those footprints . . . of that memory . . . in my mind.

Here are his sweet feet
{they weren't bare during our walk though, don't worry!}

I love my little guy so much these days. He is funny, VERY cute, loving, imaginative and says the best things. I'm so glad that I'm his mom! I'm so thankful to the Lord for allowing our footprints to stay there for those extra 10 minutes or so so that I could see them and be reminded how thankful I am {today, anyway} that I get the privilege and honor of parenting this wonderful little man-to-be!

my sweet Joe: