Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Where did our helpless little baby go? And, where did this little boy come from?

When Jack was born, I got very sick of every other parent in the world giving us one piece of advice. “enjoy it, it goes fast”; “they grow up so quickly”; “It seems like just yesterday mine were babies, and now they’re teenagers”. Jeeze, I get it, time flies, they grow up, yada yada. Hmmm…I hear a song starting up in my head…

"Is this the little girl I carried?
Is this the little boy at play?

I don't remember growing older
When did they?

When did she get to be a beauty?
When did he grow to be so tall?

Wasn't it yesterday
When they were small?

Sunrise, sunset
Sunrise, sunset"



(yes, my mom made us watch Fiddler on the Roof like 354 times). Watch out, I might soon jump into the chorus of "If I were a Rich Man" (da da da da da da…da da da da da da dum)

Jack was great when he was tiny, don’t get me wrong, but he was so helpless. He could barely move, let alone communicate in anyway. I was ready for him to take on a bit more independence. Or at least be able to sleep (see yesterday’s post) or play by himself for a few minutes.



We were so proud when he could crawl…way earlier than other babies his age!  What a genius…OK, great, now what’s next?


Now, he’s starting to walk and pretty soon, he’ll be off to college (or so it would appear given what he's after in this video).



As his one-year birthday is fast-approaching, we are organizing all of the pictures and videos we took of him (the majority on our trusty iPhones!).  Over coffee this morning, my wife and I looked at each other and asked where the time has gone?  I know, it’s not even been a year yet. I can’t imagine what we’ll be saying in 16 years when he has a silly teenage mustache and is heading out on a date (or, if he’s anything like I was, heading out to…well, no where). 

Where has our helpless sweet baby gone, and where did this adorable but destructive and very opinionated (nearly) toddler come from?  Weren’t you just starting on solid foods a few months ago, and now you’re wolfing down Cheerios and hunks of cheese like there’s no tomorrow?  Wasn’t it just a bit ago when you could barely crawl?  Now, you’re careening down stairs and climbing into cupboards.  Where did our baby go, and who replaced him with this little boy?

Although being a stay-at-home-dad was certainly not planned, the last couple of months have been amazing.  He’s changing so much every day, I feel that in some weird way, I am lucky to be here to see it all.  To see all of the changes he’s going through on a minute-by-minute basis, not just for a couple of hours in the morning and evening.  When first steps turn into running.  When he starts playing catch with the ball.  When he goes over to his new wagon to tell me he wants to go outside. When he pulls off his diaper to show me that he took a giant dump.

It’s not surprising that this is about the age that parents starting thinking about a second (or third, fourth….etc) child.  To experience that feeling all over again.  Don’t get me wrong, Jack is getting more and more awesome every day…but, we do long a bit for the helpless little baby he used to be. 

I gotta go now, Jack just woke up from his nap, and is asking for the car keys. 

1 comment:

  1. Keep those videos coming!! (By the way, Fiddler on the Roof is one of the best.)

    ReplyDelete