Last Night was Special

Last night Teddy did another run with myTEAM Triumph (MTT), which is nothing extraordinary, although each run with MTT is special in its own right. But last night was extremely special, not because of the race, but because of the circumstances surrounding the race.

You see, Dave and I both were out of town for work, not getting home until late, so we couldn't make the race even though it started at 7:30 p.m. We were grateful for Dave's folks for coming down to watch the boys but weren't going to ask them to try to figure out how to get Teddy to a race with AJ in tow.

When I posted that we wouldn't be coming, one of my friends from work who also runs with MTT, Stephanie, offered to take Teddy to the race. She made it so easy to say yes, asking if she could pick up Teddy and bring him to the race. She made it sound like it was no big deal, almost like we were doing a favor to allow her to take Teddy, rather than the other way around.

You might not understand how remarkable this is. We are blessed with an incredible network of family, friends and co-workers who help us raise our children. I had a difficult time scheduling all the adventures for AJ this summer because so many people asked to spend special time with him. That doesn't quite happen with Teddy very often. In fact, only two times come to mind.

It's not that people don't invite Teddy places, but it's not for a solo, special time adventure. It's not that people don't like Teddy or enjoy spending time with him. It's a combination of who Teddy is with his needs and, quite honestly, the energy and strength required to keep up with him and redirect him as needed. He's simply a lot of work.

Don't get me wrong. There have been offers, but there's always a bit of guilt on our part because we know the effort required with Teddy is different than with AJ. So it takes someone essentially saying, "Can I ..." or "Here's what I'm going to do." That makes it easy to say yes and know that it's not a burden.

This makes me smile and gives me all the feels. 

Last night was incredible, even though we didn't get to be at the run or see the run. I heard Teddy had a fantastic time and loved all the glow lights and his cool doughnut medal (because why wouldn't a Run with the Cops give out doughnut medals). I know he had a wonderful time given his smiles when Stephanie brought him home, the look of joy on his face when he looked at Stephanie and the big hug he gave her before she left.

As I said to Dave last night once Teddy went to bed, "The best part of my day was when Teddy got home. Gosh, that sounds weird because that's usually not the case."