Fathers

Last night Brian called us on his way home from class to see if we were watching the eclipse. I grabbed the kids and rushed them to the front yard, where we watched the blackness slowly creep over the moon. When Brian pulled in the driveway he came to stand with us, and it was time for me to pack up Marcus to go to Activity Day with the eight year old girls in our ward. I left with Brian standing in the street, holding Ethan in his arms and holding Alyssa's hand, watching the moon.

On my way to the church I saw a few couples out for walks to see the eclipse, but I didn't see any mothers out with their children. Each child I saw was accompanied by their father, and usually a telescope. I even saw Alyssa's friend, Paloma, and her dad.

It got me thinking about how cool fathers are. They're the best people to go camping with, to build forts with, and to watch the moon with. I remember laying out on the trampoline as a family to look at the stars. It was great that we were together as a family, but what made it special was having Dad with us, because we didn't see him as often. When I was a little girl we used to love watching the hydro plane races on the Columbia River. We would sit on our deck and watch the super-fast boats go by, sending water high up in the air behind them. My dad would help us build our own hydro planes each summer, helping us cut pieces out of wood and nail them together. Then we'd tie on some rope and pull our hydro planes around the back yard.

I love my dad so much, and I think that the relationships fathers have with their children are so important. I was noticing yesterday that Marcus will smile and talk to me, but it's Brian that makes him laugh. Alyssa and Ethan think they have a standing invitation to crawl all over Brian each time he lays on the living room floor. I'm so glad that I have such a wonderful father, and that my husband is such an amazing father to our children.