Happy Father's Day

These past few months of fatherhood have been some of the most exceptional experiences of my life. Megan's vocabulary is ever-expanding, she loves to sing her ABC's (even if most of the letters are somewhat garbled), and she's so genuinely curious about what everything is that she wants to be involved with everything we do.

These past few months of fatherhood have been some of the most challenging experiences of my life. Megan's independence seems to grow exponentially every day and she literally wants to do EVERYTHING herself without assistance from mom or dad, regardless of the task's difficulty. This often leads to tantrums and crying ... oh my goodness, the crying. She seems to have developed a few more octaves on the shrill scale and her foot stomping is becoming first-rate. I live in fear of running errands with her for the sheer thought of having to deal with it. And this is just the beginning of our father/daughter boundary battle. I feel she is seeing through my false sense of confidence and goes to bed dreaming up new ways to torture me.

And yet, despite those frustrations, her independence brings on a different level to our relationship. I can ask her if she's happy and I know her response is an honest one. She is much better at vocalizing her needs, well, her wants better. "More juice daddy." "More cheese daddy." "More chips daddy." "Put on 'toons daddy." And she isn't shy about possessions either. "MY blankie." "MY toys." And heaven forbid you try to put some of her books away without her approval.

But I cannot describe the joy and butterflies I feel when she rumbles over to me, throws her arms around me, or to be more accurate, tackles me and says "I wuv you daddy." And because I know the world hasn't jaded her yet, she truly, truly means it and they are the most beautiful words I could ever hear.