I became a 1st-time Dad just over a year ago. I’ll never forget the excitement, anxiety, bewilderment, confusion, and mind-numbing fear I experienced when leaving the hospital on B-Day (Baby-Day) with a our very own brand-spankin’ new, fresh baby! Everyone says the same joke “where’s the instruction manual” because everyone feels that way!
In addition to rounding off my first year as a new dad, we have our second kiddo on the way! I have learned a lot in the past year, and will do a better job with baby #2, Maximus Excalibur. (Sigh… sadly, my wife keeps vetoing this name.)
IMPORTANT CAVEAT: I definitely have NOT done all of these things superbly, or even decently at times. I have learned a lot from my wife and others. By the grace of God, I am improving and growing. Nonetheless, you can file all of this wisdom away as near Gospel. You are welcome.
I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this, but this first year has been really… well… weird, exhausting, annoying, frustrating, and wholly overwhelming. In a previous post I shared a couple major epiphanies about being a new dad: [Ponderings of a New Dad] God’s Love is Illogical and I Surrender All?.
For most guys, it is difficult to connect with babies. I am most guys. At initial, selfish glance… they just get in the way of life, marriage, sex, social activities, happiness, hobbies, and sanity. Side Note: Speaking of hobbies, say goodbye to those for the next couple decades. You have much more important things to do.
It DOES get better. It can be awesome. I have grown more than I could have imagined. There is a reason the word “exhaustion” appears many times throughout this micro-eBook of a post.
My love, appreciation, admiration, desire of and attraction to my wife has never been as high as it is now. It really is growing at alarmingly rapid rate, despite the inevitable tension that has occasionally flared up [more than the combined history of our pre-baby marriage ]. I am frequently overwhelmed by the stature, strength, heart, compassion, beauty, and innate motherliness of my wife. I remain baffled at (and learn from) how easy everything seems to come to my wife AND the constant insecurity she feels regardless of how awesome she is. I feel like a bumbling buffoon…
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