Overall, it was a pretty good weekend. And today, breakfast was made for me. Not only that, before my wife even got up, Smallsteps had cleaned up her things from the loungeroom, and neatened her whole room. Normally on the weekend, she would eat what I have prepped for her the night before, and watch some TV and play for an hour instead. My wife hadn't even asked her to do this - it was on her own volition.
I was "woken up" for breakfast (I feigned sleeping), but first had about ten different cards from school and that Smallsteps had made for me at home. There was even one in German. And, during breakfast I got the final card, with a picture of Smallsteps and I on it, and the present - a hoodie with the same image printed on the chest.
I will wear it with pride.
And, because I didn't find any yesterday and it was father's day today, I was able to convince the girls to come again with me to a different shopping area to find shoes. And, in a stroke of luck, I found two pairs of shoes that while neither are quite what I was after, will do for now. Both were on sale, which is a bonus. Smallsteps hates shopping (I am sure this will change in time), but she trooped through and barely complained. However, even though she hates it and complains normally, we always have fun on these kinds of outings.
We stayed out for a bit of father's day lunch, but because I found what I was after pretty fast, we were able to wander for a bit, but got home earlier than expected. So, we watched Finding Nemo, for the first time - something I have wanted to watch with her for so many years already. As we don't watch that many movies together, there is a massive backlog of potential things on the list. At her age, a lot of her friends are quoting from movies and shows, singing theme songs and asking for merchandise that Smallsteps knows nothing about.
She isn't missing out.
Some of the parents I know seem to spend most of the time with their kids, trying to avoid them as much as possible. There can be the sense that they are there to provide and see them through to adulthood, but not necessarily give much more than that. I really enjoy spending time with Smallsteps, because we get to talk about all kinds of rubbish, have fun, and even tease each other. It is not that we are "friends" wither, because I am definitely the bad cop as the parent, but we have a pretty good dynamic in our relationship most of the time. One day she might read this, and if it is as a teenager, that same dynamic is likely going to cause some major conflicts between us.
That is part of life.
So yeah - I think it was a successful father's day weekend. The Finnish president announced that next year there would be awards for father's day also - I wonder what are the requirements to get one. I am guessing, I won't qualify.
Maybe if Smallsteps puts in a good word for me.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]