“Praise is well, compliment is well, but affection – – that is the last and final and most precious reward that any man can win, whether by character or achievement.” – Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain

I stumbled across this quote while reading a book this morning.  It says it all really, particularly given the day spent yesterday and the day had so far with my two princesses.  No accolade;  No award; No riches;  could ever quite match the feeling of knowing the love of two affectionate princesses for whom it is enough to spend time with their father.

Okay sure, there are muscles in me that I had forgotten exist that hurt today.  But, all those steps and boulders and ladders and all that is Trail 3 in Turkey Run State Park were a memory built that will last a time for my angels.  It also proved a nice opportunity to begin to learn how to use my camera phone.

http://www.turkeyrunstatepark.com/

And that they woke up ready to go today as we enjoyed a nice breakfast.  Now they are watching The Prince of Egypt as a sort of stand in for  missed church time while I take a moment to post on the blog.

But, you know?  All the steps and missteps of yesterday and today and every moment of every day spent with these precious souls, this is what matters most in life.  I am blessed and thank my God for these times that I will and I think they will, cherish forever.

Should I ever become a decent writer, I hope that I feel the same as I do today.  Looking over at my angels it is everything knowing that they love me.  Thank you, God for all of this.