Brotherly Love

It’s hard to believe that it’s the end of March with the weather as hot as it’s been. I’m not complaining too much, this weather has been awesome for my sanity. They boys are able to run wild and free in the back yard and unleash their crazy energy. But seriously, it was 93 at my house on Wednesday and I was in shorts and a tank top. It made me think of how ungodly hot and humid this summer will be, when I will dream of moving to Antarctica to beat the heat.

The boys love being outside and there’s plenty of activities for them to choose from -- playing in the sandbox, riding their cars and tractor, playing in their cabin, sliding, the water table, bubbles -- the possibilities are endless. Every time we take a step out into the backyard, I can’t help but thinking about my carefree days as a child, running around barefoot and staying outside until it was dark.

The water table brings Luke so much joy! He loves splashing in the water, drinking from it like a puppy and throwing it all over the place. Sometimes I catch him getting even more water out of the dog bowl and drinking it. Oh well, I look at it this way -- he’s boosting his immune system. The other day, the boys had a water fight and every single drop of the water was either on them, or our deck. Tyler loves swinging, it’s good for his sensory integration dysfunction which most autistics have issues with. Swinging helps to calm him and settles his body down. The problem now is that the boys have become too heavy for our swing set, so over the weekend I hope to hang at least one, if not two swings from one of our beautiful oak trees.

Another thing I love about outdoor time is the interactions I see from the boys. They are best friends! This makes me incredibly happy and brings me back to the moment when we brought Luke home from the hospital and Tyler had a grin from ear to ear. He could not contain his excitement! He walked around saying “happy” which told me that he loved the precious, little new addition to our family. It also gave me a preview to the brotherly love that I am now witnessing. Of course we have our moments, when they are beating the fire out of each other, but that is also normal brotherly behavior. The funny thing is the more aggressive of the two is Luke. Tyler may be bigger, but Luke is a dirty cage fighter. I’m kind of nervous about the teenage years and really dread bringing blood into the mix.

Yesterday, the boys had me in stitches! Tyler was driving his tractor and Luke was driving the big red car. All of a sudden Tyler tells Luke, “Come on Luke. Let’s go to Hobby Lobby.” It made me laugh and realize that maybe we go there a little too much. Then came, “Hey Luke, let’s go to HEB and get some ice cream.” Life imitates art, I guess. This morning was no different, I woke to the sweet sounds of the boys playing before 6 am. Then, I heard them head into their bathroom and Tyler was telling Luke, “Come on Luke, it’s time to go potty. You need to pull down your shorts and pull up and sit on the potty.” Holy cow, will it be this easy with Luke? Will he follow his big brother’s lead? One can hope.

I love the great outdoors, but even more, watching big smiles on the boys faces as they run like the wind in the yard. They get filthy and always have little boy essence on them when they come into the house. In my eyes, these are the best times and the moments I will remember always, my crazy little monkeys.