Or maybe you prefer...
At any rate, today I happen to have a two year old little girl on my hands. We've managed to keep her alive this long, which, I know, is a pretty basic bar to get over - but it's an important bar none the less. When I look back over the process in getting to this point it often seems like forever ago that we were just nervous parents stepping out of the hospital doors with trepidation, with no real idea how this thing was going to play out. However, especially when I see other people with their newborns, I realize just how fast these two years have flown by. People told me how fast it would be, and I think I believed them to an extent, but I had no idea what the reality of that would look like. I hope that I exerted the appropriate amount of appreciation for all of the little milestones that have already happened. First tooth, first time she crawled, first step, first word, first birthday, first Christmas, and so on, etc. Sure, when we were getting up every couple of hours to feed - or even now, as she has begun potty training, there are times that I can't wait for certain elements of the process to be over and done. However, I have tried to, even in the unpleasant moments, to cherish the experience. Because it is fast - impossibly so, and even more as I watch her become the little person she will grow up to be.
The most amazing thing about it, I have found, is that as I watch the wonderment with which she experiences the world around her it shapes how I encounter the world moving forward. It removes some of the jaded cynicism that naturally clouds our view of things and forces me to slow down and rediscover the beauty of nature, the sound of the birds, or the thrill of fear and/or excitement that accompanies really truly seeing something for the first time. Certainly, life is different than it was B.C. (before child). This difference is especially glaring when we are around friends that don't have kids. Do I miss the freedom? At times. Would I trade a night at the movies for the opportunity to snuggle on the couch with Daddy's girl, listening the sound of her laughter and feeling her lean into the security of my arms? Not for all the jewels in Christendom - or the winning powerball ticket...or whatever. Point being, it's worth it. Don't get me wrong, I covet those moments that I get to spend with just me and the wife, and also any time that I have to spend with myself. And those things are super important! In fact, my second piece of advice (the first was to cherish the experience if you are taking notes at home) is to make sure to always breathe life into your relationship. My daughter is going to grow up and be gone in 18ish years, but then I'm stuck with my wife for the duration. I'll probably get in trouble for using the term "stuck with", but...oh well. Point being, you gotta keep the spark burning bright. If you let it go out, then you've got nothing to fan the flames with once the little chick flies the coop. I'm pretty sure I just used multiple metaphors in that last sentence. I hope you are at least fractionally as impressed with me as I am. Just kidding...but seriously...
To many that are little further down the road of life I am surely preaching to the choir. However, if any should (eventually) read this that are just starting down this particular fork in the road, I beg you to take heed. Certainly, I'm still learning as I go.
I guess this post wasn't so much discussion as simply my reflection upon a milestone in my life, but it's what was on my wandering mind, so there you go.
Thank you for your time, talk to you soon!
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