The Dawn of a Different World
Dear Little Ones,
There are certain days in your life that will signal the start of a new era. Sometimes, you have no idea that a life-changing day has passed, like the day you first try White Castle. You won't realize it while you are eating, but your fast food experience will never be the same. Other times in life, you will instantly know that everything has changed, such as the day you get your license, or go to college, or turn 21, or say "I do" to that special someone you somehow convinced to marry you. These are all great experiences, but as the crazy feelings are all coming up again as we wait for baby #2 to be born, I want to share the day(s) that marked the end/beginning of a major era in my adult life, the day that we brought Marshall home.
There were plenty of indicators that life was going to be changed. Going out at night was brought to a near halt as soon as we found out your mom was pregnant. We ended up homeowners pretty quickly after that, and getting the place ready for a baby was the main objective behind our (very extensive) remodel. My extra spending on things like beer, sporting events, concerts, random trips, and beer, was also greatly reduced. I was under the impression that life was slowly preparing me for the major change that was coming, but being fully prepared was never really possible.
As I write this letter, I don't mean to imply that I realized I was a Dad once we brought Marshall home. From the first day your mom peed on a stick when we were still living in Champaign, I could feel a newfound awesomeness in my life. Then came hearing the heartbeat, which was better than hearing Stairway to Heaven for the first time. And then came seeing the ultrasound, which was like seeing the Rams win the Superbowl, except even better, like I was also on the field and partook in the celebration, and the game was being played in outer space. And I cannot even put into words what the actual birth was like, or how my perspective changed, (although I will try to in a future letter).
After Marshall was born, your Mom and I hung out in the hospital for a few days. We were temporarily distracted by friends and family, and terrible food, but we ultimately knew the terrifyingly exciting moment was coming when we would be escorted out of the hospital, and then told to get out, and take this new person with us. The feeling was kind of like riding a gigantic roller coaster, and the whole time we were at the hospital we were going up, up, up, up, slowly, along a hill while the ride creaks, and at any minute we were going to have those 2 seconds of silence, followed by screams and some crazy feelings in the gut. Either way, it was way too late to get off the ride.
Your mom and I entered the hospital those fateful days last July as a family of 2, just going about our lives, and knowing that soon we would get to meet the little guy who was beating the crap out of her and no longer appeared to fit inside her stomach. It is a once in a lifetime feeling (that we will soon be experiencing again) to be given complete and utter responsibility of another person. This is a responsibility that on the one hand, feels crushingly overwhelming, but on the other hand feels like you have been handed this incredible job that you are convinced you only got due to some error in the application process, so you can't wait to jump in and kick some ass before the mistake is realized.
Needless to say, it was easy to tell that my life would never be the same as soon as we left with Marshall in tow. I do not feel all-knowing, full of wisdom, or even capable of keeping salad alive long enough to eat it before it is all brown and nasty. And yet, as those automatic glass doors slid shut at the hospital, and there was no longer anyone except for me, your mom, and Marshall all bundled up in a car seat, a calm came over all 3 of us, and a huge grin crept to my face. We already knew that our world (and likely the rest of the world), were never going to be the same, and it was awesome.
Thanks for reading,
Love,
Dad
Please feel free to Like/Share on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/averagedadvice
There are certain days in your life that will signal the start of a new era. Sometimes, you have no idea that a life-changing day has passed, like the day you first try White Castle. You won't realize it while you are eating, but your fast food experience will never be the same. Other times in life, you will instantly know that everything has changed, such as the day you get your license, or go to college, or turn 21, or say "I do" to that special someone you somehow convinced to marry you. These are all great experiences, but as the crazy feelings are all coming up again as we wait for baby #2 to be born, I want to share the day(s) that marked the end/beginning of a major era in my adult life, the day that we brought Marshall home.
There were plenty of indicators that life was going to be changed. Going out at night was brought to a near halt as soon as we found out your mom was pregnant. We ended up homeowners pretty quickly after that, and getting the place ready for a baby was the main objective behind our (very extensive) remodel. My extra spending on things like beer, sporting events, concerts, random trips, and beer, was also greatly reduced. I was under the impression that life was slowly preparing me for the major change that was coming, but being fully prepared was never really possible.As I write this letter, I don't mean to imply that I realized I was a Dad once we brought Marshall home. From the first day your mom peed on a stick when we were still living in Champaign, I could feel a newfound awesomeness in my life. Then came hearing the heartbeat, which was better than hearing Stairway to Heaven for the first time. And then came seeing the ultrasound, which was like seeing the Rams win the Superbowl, except even better, like I was also on the field and partook in the celebration, and the game was being played in outer space. And I cannot even put into words what the actual birth was like, or how my perspective changed, (although I will try to in a future letter).
Your mom and I entered the hospital those fateful days last July as a family of 2, just going about our lives, and knowing that soon we would get to meet the little guy who was beating the crap out of her and no longer appeared to fit inside her stomach. It is a once in a lifetime feeling (that we will soon be experiencing again) to be given complete and utter responsibility of another person. This is a responsibility that on the one hand, feels crushingly overwhelming, but on the other hand feels like you have been handed this incredible job that you are convinced you only got due to some error in the application process, so you can't wait to jump in and kick some ass before the mistake is realized.
Thanks for reading,
Love,
Dad
Please feel free to Like/Share on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/averagedadvice
Comments
Post a Comment