Daddy daycare

I've been under the weather. I'll fill you in on the details soon...

Recently we upgraded our video camera. This one didn't work out - the picture quality as you'll see isn't great. Regardless here is a glimpse into Fridays when Shaune is off and takes care of Deaglan all day. He thought this was pretty funny and after I finished shaking my head I had to admit it was.

As you will recall from previous posts, my international friends, Tim Horton's is the most popular coffee joint in Canada. Shaune has wasted no time in instilling the love of this place in Deaglan. Just this morning Deaglan said Daddy Tim Hoiton's.

Someone call Mensa!

Winter has sent its messenger to let us know it will be along shortly. My morning routine has become slightly more taxing. When I returned to work in January, Deaglan was still more baby than toddler and quite cooperative. Getting his footgear, coat and accessories on weren’t challenging. However this has not been the case of late.

These days by the time I’ve finished tackling and pinning him down long enough to get him dressed and out the door, I am out of breath. He’s everywhere.

If he’s not running away from me, he’s running to the TV or stereo to bust out some moves. He can’t stop dancing. The other morning I asked Shaune to check the weather channel for that day’s forecast and walked in on Deaglan cutting a rug to the local forecast guitar solo.

He’s changed so much in the last few months. And like I said to my brother and his wife the other night – I know that it’s probably normal but it’s hard not to think that your child is a genius when he starts doing all of these neat new things. He breaks into songs like Bah, Bah Black Sheep out of the blue and he’s talking all the time in clear and distinct phrases. He is able to tell us when he wants to eat or drink or watch one of his Thomas the train videos.

At night when we have our reading time, he is able to differentiate each book either by reciting a key phrase or telling me its name. His attention span for sitting and listening to me read has increased tenfold. I can read all of Green Eggs and Ham without him losing interest for a second. Last night when I finished reading the longer version of The Tale of Peter Rabbit he took the book from me, opened to the pages where I had earlier asked for his participation (when Mr. MacGregor says kertschoo – I always ask Deaglan to sneeze and when Mr. MacGregor’s hoeing is described, I ask Deaglan to scritch and scratch) and again repeated the actions. Genius I tell you!

What an exciting time in a human’s life and I feel so privileged to witness it. It takes my breath away and reminds me how good, how really really good this parenting gig is.

Deaglan is pictured here with his Papa - my dad.

Simple

The things that make me happy are quite simple. An unsolicited hug or kiss from Deaglan. Hearing him speak in almost-sentences. A belly laugh from Shaune. The smell of Deaglan’s hair. A warm meal prepared with attention and love. Time spent together with the television off. Getting the housework done. The way Deaglan says Mommie pease moe book. Fitting the whole family on our bed.

The things that make me sad are simple as well. Feeling unwelcome. Not holding Deaglan when he’s within arm’s reach. Weekends that fly by. Racism. Children starving or being hurt. Meanness.

The things that irritate the crap out of me can be simple too. People’s antiquated notions of parenthood and having to hear their opinions on how we are raising our boy. You aren’t being very subtle by the way. One uppers. A lack of self-awareness. Passive aggressive behaviour. Egomaniacs. Unannounced visits.

On why I haven't written lately

I took a break from blogging. Sometimes I feel vulnerable that I share so much about my life here. At these times it helps me to keep quiet.

I often feel torn between wanting to write deeply personal things and keeping it light. Mostly it comes down to my fear of what people will think about me.

But if I look at that fear, I see that it is what keeps us all so separate and alone. Perhaps sharing our humanity is the healthier thing.

The break did me good anyway. I thought about this strange hobby I've grown to love. I realized it's when I share a particularly personal story that I feel a bit less lonely in this world.