Since father's day has just past, and my daughter Emily's 1st birthday is quickly approaching (June 26th), I thought I would summarize some of my fatherhood experiences from the first year.
There have been way to many amazing things that have happened this year to write about here, but I will try to hit on a few of the key points.
1.
Enjoy the Now.Probably the most important thing I have learned during this first year is to enjoy Emily just as she is. It is very easy for me to get caught up in what will be, thinking how much fun it will be when she starts talking, or how much fun we will have when she starts walking, that I can miss how amazing she is right now.
Lucky for me, Amanda is always there to remind me of how amazing she is, I mean how amazing Emily is :). Children change and grow so fast early on and they are learning and doing new things everyday, and before you know it those things are gone. They go through so many phases in what seems like a blink of an eye. If you are looking ahead you are bound to miss something amazing right now. I think I have gotten better at this as we move forward but I still catch myself thinking about all the fun Emily and I are going to have in the future, which is fine as long as I remember to have just as much fun with her now.
2.
There is nothing like being close to family. We recently moved to the New Jersey area, which puts us in between Amanda's family and my family, and it was one of the smartest decisions we have made. Once Emily decided to join us (about a week late, typical woman. I kid, I kid) we knew that all of our family would want to see her all of the time. We had been living in Maryland which was about a 4-5 hour drive to see either family, and it was becoming a grind. I can't imagine having that distance between us now, since just about every weekend we are with family. Our families have also been a huge help with everything, especially Emily.
3.
Being an Uncle is fun, but nothing beats being a dad. I have three nieces, and I love them all, and the are a ton of fun. I had always said I was on the weekend plan before Emily came along, hang out with my nieces for the weekend, then go home. This was a great plan, and I still love heading down to my brother in law's house to hang out with the girls, but nothing beats coming home to Emily. As a parent you are one of the two people that she wants to be with the most, and that is certainly hard to top. When I walk in the house and she gets a huge smile and crawls over to see my as fast as she can, just melts my heart :)
4.
Nature certainly has a lot to do with things. I have always been on the side of nurture in the nature vs nurture argument, but after seeing my daughter develop this year, nature has to have a good deal to do with it. Both Amanda and I are very laid back people, and Emily as a baby was very laid back as well. She never really cried and always just went with the flow, fit in well. Now however, she has really started to form her own personality, and it sure isn't laid back. She has already begun to throw little temper tantrums, which is actually kind of funny because she is extremely over dramatic. She puts her hand on her face throws her head towards the floor and cries. Part of me can't help but laugh since I know nothing is wrong. She is also a very independent child. Amanda takes her to a play group on most Thursdays and most of the young children there sit on their moms laps or right next to them playing nicely. Emily on the other hand, is across the room playing on her own, occasionally looking for Amanda. I am very curious to see how her personality continues to grow over the years.
5.
The best is yet to come. I have had so many good times and milestone events in my life over the past few years, but whenever I think about life and whats to come, it is very easy to see that the best is still coming.