I have partnered with Life of Dad and Pampers for this promotion. My thoughts and point of view are my own. But keep in mind it is not just me saying #ThanksBaby. There are tons of dads doing it. Please do yourself a favor and check out the hashtag and see what all we are thankful for this Father’s Day.
Dearest Children,
There are a lot of things that I can thank you for. Parenthood, in general, can be a thankless job with no pay – but it comes with the most amazing of benefits. Sure, you get pooped on, peed on, puke on, cried at, yelled at, and eventually the goal is to do your job so well that your client leaves you and finds their own home.
Believe me that is oversimplifying the view of parenthood/fatherhood, and does NOT accurately describe every parenting situation. There are many different types of families out there and they are formed in different ways and operate different ways – and that is cool. Never forget that.
My Experience
Having said that, as a father, I have only had one experience – which is being your dad. I know the ride isn’t over yet (thank goodness because we still have a LOT of work to do:), but I just want to take a moment and say “Thank you.”
Now before you go singing that song about me being welcome, let me explain what I am grateful for. People often talk about the bonding experience between parents and kids but do we know what that really means? It’s more than quality time, trust me.
You see when I first met both of you, neither of you could speak, but you said volumes. No, we couldn’t play catch, tag, or ride bikes (yet), but we snuggled. We giggled. We slept. We explored. We met people. We listened to music.
What We Saw
I got to see the world, our world, with new eyes. Yours. It’s easy to get chagrined and frustrated with our world. Your view was like a fresh coat of paint. It covered some of the cracks, made some of the imperfections seem interesting, caused me to look beyond what I already knew.
We crawled, rolled, and waddled. We strolled through parks, zoos, and neighborhoods. We spoke to people (mainly because both of you were so cute). We explored food, stories, and games.
Despite the fact that these books do turn out the same way no matter how many times you read them in a row, we became entranced and enthralled with the lady who swallowed a fly (we still don’t know why), the animals at the zoo that we said good night to, or the man, the monkeys, and the hats that were for sale.
At the end of the day, when you had your last meal, and mommy was tired, and I would get to rock you (one of you needed a vacuum cleaner and a Michael Buble CD playing simultaneously) – it was my favorite sight to see your eyes get sooo big because you were so tired and then slowly close as your head would snuggled into my chest. I could always tell when both of you were asleep because I could feel the stress and the weight of all that exploration of this big world just melt out of your body. One of you would bounce your leg and twist your hair until you feel asleep. The other just seemed to pull yourself in closer when you knew the sandman’s visit was imminent.
The Lesson
I remember all of these things (and many more), and they taught me a lot about myself, your mother (who is one of the most amazing people I know), our family, and this big old world. Sometimes you have to look at your surroundings with new eyes, newborn eyes, and rediscover the beauty and wonder around you.
Don’t forget that. Thank you for that. I love you.
Daddy
For more information about Pampers and how they are helping fathers celebrate Father’s Day, please check out the video and links below.