Fits of laughter?
Ok if you know him WELL, you know he's pretty ornery, but his 'public persona' is more of a quiet, shy type. While he's loving and sweet with me one-on-one, he's not really one to show emotion. People who don't read my blog and see us out together probably don't think we have any kind of spark at all. There's a lot of banter, picking, joking, and FLICKING things at
He was also very vocally hoping for a boy.
So I wasn't sure what kind of a dad he would be to our little baby girl. I knew he would be a good father, but what kind? Would he be one of those dads who aren't too plugged-in during the baby days? Would they have a respect for each other, but not a gushy "daddy's girl" type of love? Would he encourage her in sports and farming, but not the 'girly' parts of life? The jury is still somewhat out, but I've learned a lot about him the past few weeks.
During my pregnancy he was all about the "wait and see." When the time came for bebe to arrive, that's when the questions started coming. About what would happen when she came out, where would she go, what would they do, how long would it take, etc.
Within the approximately 30 minutes that I was semi-comfortable with the epidural, I tried to give him a good idea about what was about to happen. Somewhere in the answering and discussing I must have mentioned him holding her. All I remember was his response.
"Honestly, I don't think I want to hold her until this is all over with and everyone leaves," he said, referring to the nursing staff and my doctor. I didn't ask him why, and it didn't bother me, it just stuck with me.
Fast forward a few minutes. Bebe had arrived, Hubbs had cut the cord, and the nurses had taken her over to the little baby thingy to clean her off, weigh her, and wrap her up (and whatever else they do over there). The nurse asked if we had a camera. In all the crazy rush we had forgotten about taking pictures! Hubby grabbed it and went over to take some pictures.
Between my constant questions to my doctor about WHAT exactly she was doing and was it going to hurt as she was finishing up my delivery, I glanced across the room at my sweet screaming bundle of joy. I watched as the nurse wrapped her in the blanket, and anticipated her speedy arrival in my arms.
As I watched, the nurse pushed Kailyn toward her daddy and asked if he wanted to hold her. There wasn't a moment's hesitation. He stuffed the camera in his pocket and took hold of her. All smiles and awe, he snuggled her close and inspected her little face. He kept her until my doctor was finished, then brought her to me and sat on the bed as we both admired our new addition.
By the next day he was changing diapers. Not often, but doing it nonetheless ;)
He spent a week catering to our every need, taking us to appointments and obligations. Keeping the house up. And holding that baby.
Every night when he gets home he cleans up quickly and gets a hold of his girl as quickly as he can. He drags her little sleeper over by his chair, and if she's not in his arms, she's right beside him. In the mornings he never gets out of bed until he's snuggled with her, and he never leaves her sight without a kiss and some lovin'.
For a guy who was hell-bent on having a boy, he's sure turned out to be a pretty great girl-dad :)
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