The Summer of George comes to an end

Newly born Lily cuddles up with Mommy.

Whew! Things got crazy there for a while, during the Summer of George (AKA the Summer of Lily).
Cherish returned to work today after a lengthy maternity leave (but not nearly long enough), and with that, I returned to my job as stay-at-home dad.
We did tons this summer -- Cherish declared it the best summer ever. We trekked to places unknown, ate at places well known, and we uncovered places in ourselves we hope will be better known.
We had good times and bad, but almost all of the times were good, and that was a great achievement during this, the Summer of George.
I won't recall it all here, but here's a taste of what we experienced:

• Foremost, Lily came into this world, all 8 pounds, 5 ounces of her. She rang in smaller than her sister, who topped 10 pounds, but she was no less a bundle of happiness. Lily has a touch of red hair like her sister, and she has bright blue eyes (they are smiling Irish eyes, believe me). The sisters are different, to be sure. Willow is chill. Lily is bouncy (kick those legs, Little Sister!). Lily smiles more, and loves looking at Mommy, Daddy and Sister. Willow is Miss Independent. Lily is cuddly. Willow is a super-sleeper. Lily hasn't honed the craft (yawn).
• No Summer of George would be complete without a visit or 20 to some fine local eateries (and lots and lots and lots of milkshakes, thank you very much, Sonic). Cherish and I didn't go out too often with Willow when she was an infant. Not so with Lily. We dragged her everywhere. We ate everything (so much so, Che and I are in a diet frenzy). We ate at I Dream of Weenie, The Pied Piper, a Vietnamese restaurant in West Nashville (I couldn't begin to recall the name) and, our favorite new joint, Bobbie's Dairy Dip (ooooooo-la-la). We tried out a bunch of other places, but I don't have all day to write. The experience at any of those places was supreme, but a word of warning: Order a size or two smaller than you'd expect to at Bobbie's; a medium cone is the size of your head! (Oh, I recommend the fries there too).
• We visited new places. Willow's favorite day of the summer, I'm sure, was our day trip to Monkey Joe's in Goodlettsville. We'll be heading back to that place plenty this fall. Willow loved it, especially when she got to mingle with the bigger kids. Lily slept. We also spent quite a few days at the local YMCA pool, at the spray fountains at Bicentennial Mall in Nashville and an afternoon at the Adventure Science Center. We also picnicked at a vintage baseball game, and Daddy got to go a handful of Nashville Sounds games.
• We had few bad days during the Summer of George. But one will go down as "Black Monday." That's the day Willow, Mommy and I spent at the emergency room at Vanderbilt's children's hospital. Willow broke her right leg when I fumbled her getting her off our bed. That was not a good day. But the injury, and the bright pink cast on her leg, hasn't slowed Willow one bit. Actually, she completed her first 5K this summer, limping across the finish line of the Titans Back to Football 5K (after Mommy pushed her the first 3 miles in the stroller). Go here and search for "Cherish Matthews" in the Titan's 5K to see pictures of Willow beaming up at Titans cheerleaders as she crosses the finish line (http://www.marathonfoto.com/5K/Titans-Back-to-Football-Run-2013/site/viewphotos/RaceOID/26682013M2).
• I've only scratched on all we did during the Summer of George, but it's enough to give you a taste of all we experienced and all we learned this summer. We learned Willow is strong and optimistic; you can't keep her down. We learned Lily is bright-eyed and happy. We learned we are a strong family, ready to grow and to take on the future head on and with fun in our eyes. We know what is important in life.

And this is what I learned about my partner in this, our grand adventure: Cherish Matthews is the greatest person I know (and surely the world's best mommy). On the last day of the Summer of George, Cherish spent the evening playing with her girls, and she found some time to write letters to each of them. She wrote about the best summer ever. I don't know what was in the notes, but I know the words brought tears to her eyes. Imagine that: spending the best months of your life with your two young children, experiencing the best that life has to offer (ice cream and jumping and swimming and laughing and crying), and it comes to end, like everything does, and you have to leave those kiddos at home with that stinky, snoring man, so you can earn the buck that keeps it all going (those fun times at night and in the mornings and on the weekends and during those trips to the beach). Imagine that and you will see the strength and the love that I see in my wife, and that I see in the children she gave to me.