Early Christmas Presents....

I remember some early Christmas presents as a kid, and boy were those some cool times!! It's a pleasure to be able to surprise our little 'almost 4' year old daughter with an early Christmas present this year!! Although the two big boxes that comprise this gift have been leaning against our living room wall for some time, our little girl hasn't given their presence that much thought. This will be the last year for that I know!! :) Next year she will be on the look out for such abnormalities of environment. Initially, when they arrived she asked what they were and I told her that they were boxes containing "something for somebody". That was the one and only time I'll be able to use that 'card'! :)

Thanks to all the Grandmas and Grandpas that put their hard earned dollars together to put a Big Smile on this little Lovely's face!! Her mother and I are hoping that if she has this to jump on and expend energy with, that she will be less inclined to bounce around off the walls in the house. We'll see!....

Oh, and her fan club need not be concerned. We shall take many pictures and a few little videos to share her experience with her friends and family!

(We're also going to have a little talk about the fact that 'Early Christmas Presents' are an anomaly of nature and shan't be expected year after year.)

Bounce On!!!.......

p.s. We've included a picture of said trampoline. The kid shown in the picture is not ours, by the way, in case there were any questions. :)

I Never Thought....

I never thought that I would be repeating myself as much as is necessary in being the father to a toddler. As much as we, as adults, become used to conversing (in intelligent conversation) with our peers, it is highly unlikely (in my case anyway) that we are accustomed to repeating what we say ad nauseam. Yet, this is exactly what the father and mother of a young child are called to do day in and day out in a simple, but necessary process that hopefully results in partial task completions. Partial? Yes, partial. It must, I ascertain, be later down the road when tasks are 'fully' completed as a result of the constant repetitious instruction. I am fully aware that I sound like a 'broken record' and I suppose that is my job at this point and currently I see no 'end' to that one. *big smile* That's a main line to our job description though, isn't it?? "Must sound like a broken record, despite himself". Hehe. That must be in there somewhere. :-)

I have also come to appreciate a whole new level of what is most commonly termed 'multi-tasking'. I thought I knew what this was, but I didn't have a clue as to the steep hill that I was going to have to climb to have a good understanding of this. Oh no, I didn't know jack. Taking care of myself? Oh, that was nothing compared to the skills that I have had to muster in just coming up to speed on this. It's quite funny really. We have furniture in our place of residence, sure....but I don't sit on anything for longer than a few moments before I am up and tending to this and that and back again, only to get up again after just having sat down. This happens constantly. Our sofa is only available for prolonged sitting after 9pm. Before that time it's just a way station for a moment or two between tasks.

As a father you learn to look ahead to anticipate needs before they arise. You learn this, and Quickly for your own ease of survival and economy of resources; your own energy being the foremost resource.

Being a dad has taught and continues to teach me each and everyday how to be the 'most' of who I am or rather 'how' to 'make the most Out of Who I Am'. Being a father pushes me, requires of me to become a better and better example and stretches me to refine myself, and then to refine even further in a process that is forging me from the inside out. I am no 'super-parent'. I'm just
a common guy, a perfectly imperfect man learning about himself and about life through the act of fatherhood itself. An incredible, ever fresh chasm of self-discovery. So far, it's the most miraculous thing I've known. .......Hands Down!