This was taken when I brought the boys to Calverts in Dickson for Walker's first panel installment. I have about 10 of these pictures and it's so hard to pick out a favorite, but I love the way Will is holding Walker's head. He took the job of big brother very seriously and if I close my eyes, I can still picture that first year of bliss after Walker was born. No fighting, just loving. :) Will is a my nurturer and this picture just says it all. He is very loving and has such a heart for the well-being of others. Now he might aggravate the fire out of Walker, but he is also the first person to make sure Walker is safe and if anyone tried to hurt him, watch out! I can still remember the way Walker watched Will's every move when he was a baby, he would practically get whiplash watching him run back and forth and oh, Will could make him laugh like no one else. Will had the sweetest voice that he would only use for Walker when he would talk to him.
I look at this picture with fondness. I don't remember what it took to get out of the house, how many times I had to run back inside because I forgot something, driving the boys an hour to get their picture made, nursing in the dressing room at Calverts (which I'm sure I had to do), Walker's endless crying because he hated being in the car (which I'm sure he did, because he cried in the car pretty much the first year of his life).
This picture gives me HOPE! Hopefully, I will look back on what my life is like today with fondness too. Hopefully I won't remember the tears (mine and theirs), the long days that I don't think I can possibly get through, the feeling that I'm living out the movie Groundhog Day, or the constant messes. Hopefully I will remember their precious voices when they sing, our bedtime routines, hearing their belly laughter when something is really, really funny, searching for treasures outside and watching them grow and learn something new everyday.
