Missing Daddy

We miss our Daddy around here. It feels like it has been so long since he has been around much, and really it has. I think it was January when he started his job in the bay area. So, he was commuting two days a week and finishing up law school with a pretty heavy load. Then came graduation and bar preparation. We are almost done. It will be really weird for him to just be working. After all, he has been in school throughout our entire marriage. I think it will be really nice, though. We are both hoping that this job will allow him to just be home, without all of these other tasks looming over his head all the time. I know there are definite benefits to the student days--long Christmas vacations for one. Still, we are ready to move on.

Joe has been leaving his phone at home, so as to not be distracted by it, which has finally given me the opportunity to upload the pictures. The quality of some of these is not great but I think they are pretty cute....

Nate loves to help Daddy mow the lawn:

Then he started mowing himself:

One morning, we were actually still in bed when the kids woke up and it was such a treat. The kids were so happy to see Daddy and they eventually ended up like this:

...packed around Daddy as tightly as they could manage.

It was adorable.

Our daddy works so hard and we are so proud of all that he has accomplished. Sometimes I get so caught up in my own struggles with the kids and whatever else that I forget that he is spending day after day, alone, packing information into his brain, when of course he'd much rather be with us.

We love you, Joe. You are amazing.

(Maybe this will count as a proper Father's Day post?) :)