It’s been almost 10 months since our little girl entered the world. You may find it surprising that it has been a rather uneventful 10 months. Sure, Covid happened and a host of other wild items in 2020. However, all that made the downtime that much more precious.
As you can imagine, one thing I am grateful for in this time is our health. There are so many people we know who are struggling. Whether that is our friends personally, or something related to their baby, my wife and I look at our situation with gratitude.
As a stay at home dad, stepping into fatherhood in this season means that I am around for a lot of the first year milestones. It’s funny that I don’t recall so many of those milestones for my siblings. Or maybe I didn’t care as much back then, lol.
Any dad or mom here can relate at how priceless that first baby step is and how excruciating that first tooth is. Incidentally, baby girl is working on tooth number 3 right now. Thank goodness for nap time.
I imagined myself being a dad for a long time. At any family gathering you could easily find me by listening for the baby or toddler laughs. Yes, I am one of those big kids that would wind up your children before sending them home with you. It’s funny being on the far end of that equation now and wearing my own little girl out before bedtime. Or, in other scenes, keeping her up till we want her going to bed.
My wife tells me often what a great dad I am. It is fun to for her to toot my horn so to speak. At the same time, it is encouraging to hear someone make note of what I have felt for a long time - I enjoy being a dad.
Sometimes we have those people in our life who can point out our gifts, and sometimes we don’t. Finding and keeping those special people in our life will always be life’s aim. I’m thankful for mentors who told me early on not to chase after temporary success. The exchange of family for wealth isn’t worth it. I’ll keep doing my thing and relish the life I have. It’s worth more than the dollar bill.
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