Daddy's Ode to his Daughter

A Father's Note--

First off, thanks goes out to my sweetest of sweet daughter for allowing me to post on her blog. It's an honor, Honeypot! I guess I just wanted to say how amazing having a child is...a million times better than a clone...although that would be cool, too. It's hard to describe the change that comes over one's life, since the first month is really a blur. "Am I doing this right? Am I a good parent? When does she sleep? When the heck do I sleep?" Time really does fly now...we're coming up on two months...and I finally understand when people say it all goes by too fast. Today, Krisianna and I had to box up some of her clothes into a Clothing Time Capsule. (I have three of them myself, unavailable to the public eye until 2056--when they'll surely be back in high fashion again) Yes, at almost two months, she's already 24 inches long. 12 more inches and she'll be able to go on a carousel. 18 more inches and she'll be able to ride The Matterhorn at Disneyland. 48 more inches and she'll be taller than me! What's the rush, girl?! Some of those clothes she only wore once....and some she didn't even have a chance to show off at all. All those cute little dresses...it really tugs at your heart. Is this what's its like? And if so, isn't there any way to slow it down? Would my life be wasted if I devoted all my time to trying to build a time machine? I seriously had one of those Daddy Freak Outs. I broke down and starting pulling out all the clothes Krisianna put aside and starting pleading with her--"Lili can still fit into this...and this dress, she looked so cute! C'mon let's put it on her...Oh, and this monkey onesey is her favorite...she can't be too big for it...she just can't..." Krisianna smiled and said,"We can save them for the next one." What? Who said anything about another one!?!?! When will I ever sleep, then? She's right, but the truth is, Lili will never be this small again. NB is like, so last week. 0-3 is practically in the books. 3-6 is on deck. All we can do is count our blessings and enjoy being a part of her growing up each and every day...no matter how hard it is to watch her get bigger. I guess when she's small, I feel like I can protect her...like she's safe from everything in the world in her Daddy's arms...she's so hopelessly beautiful and helpless falling asleep on my chest...that my instinct to protect her takes over. But in the back of my mind, I realize that every day she gets bigger is another day closer to her crawling, talking, walking...out our door and off to college. I know, that's crazy to think about considering she's not even two months old, but Krisianna and I both know how precious this time is...how precious every moment with her is. We both know that one day we won't be able to pick her up anymore (I'll try though, trust me) and one day she'll probably even say, "Don't...I wanna do it on my own." SPOILER ALERT**** (Do not read on if you still believe is Santa Clause, The Easter Bunny, Leprechauns, Tooth Fairies, Optimus Prime or Sasquatch) Hey, there's going to come a time, very soon, that she'll be taking over this blog for real...and she won't need help from a couple of Ghostwriters... :(

I love you sweetie, but please, for your father's sake...stop growing up so fast. Listen, I don't care how big you get...I'm keeping you in size (1) diapers until you bust clean through your velcro straps...and the dang thing drops to the floor. That's a promise and kind of a mild threat, too!!!!! Enjoy all the days--all the dirty diapers, all the midnight (if only that were the case...try more like 3-4am) feedings, all the bottle cleanings...These are the simpler times and things we'll be looking back on...heck, we already are. Time to live in the moment my friends--gotta go give my gal a bath and teach her to howl at the full moon-- hope to see you all soon and share our ever-growing bundle of joy with you all.

With love,
Daddy Bock