Brothers' Day 2004

We had a fantastic Brothers' Day yesterday -- just a I had hoped! We spent the day letting Jackson and Poter do anything they wanted, making sure that they had every opportunity to enjoy things together -- as best friends -- and share very happy times. Of course it should be that way EVERY day, but starting last year Katie and I decided we'd put aside one special day in July each year to let the boys celebrate each other --

This year we did the Ringling Bros, Barnum & Bailey Circus, then dinner at Taqueria la Tapitia. The boys got up a little early, and Katie took them to get bagels for breakfast. We headed over to the circus about 90 min early so we could go to the animal open house, and see the up-close activities down in the 3-ring area. There were lots of clowns and dancers and they brought out elephants & horses.

When we got there, there were a whole lot of people and the minute we walked into the arena, Jackson just stopped and I could see him shaking a little bit -- "I'm scared," he said. Big crowds bother him. I told him I'd be right there, and that we'd try to get away from the biggest parts of the crowd. He did wonderful. Porter, of course, loves all the activity -- crowds or no crowds!

We had real close seats for the show, so it was a real treat to the boys. They could see everything right up next to them, and I could tell that made it extra special. Jackson laughed like he hadn't laughed in months -- and Porter watched every minute, happy as could be. The boys got cotton candy, a big funny hat, a program (they love reading it the rest of the year), a light-up clown nose, a twirly light toy for Porter and an elephant stuffed-animal (named Asia) for Jackson.

In the afternoon, we all took a bit of a nap -- a well needed rest. When we got up, we went over to the comic book shop to get a few new Spider-man comics (they didn't have the new special series Identity Crisis or Batman ones for me). Then we went over to the Taqueria. The boys were wonderful during dinner, even though it had clearly been a long day.

When we got home, I read their 2 comics to them, then they watched a cartoon before bed. Katie and I capped off the day by watching 'Secret Window' on DVD, then off to bed.

It was a really good day. One of the best. As long as I can, I'll make sure Brothers' Day is a day just for Jackson and Porter. I think I love it as much as they do.