Keeping up

It sometimes gets pretty hard to keep up with everything in life - this blog included.  So my apologies for not being able to post most frequently these days.  There is quite a bit going on and many pictures and vids to go through and post.  Maybe I'll just have to do one catch up post.  For now, I'm just going to post a couple just consisting of text to get everyone up to speed with what's been going on with Naomi.  Stay tuned!

My first Father's Day with Naomi & Nadia

To me, being a Father and husband to the best of my ability is all that matters.  It is what drives me beyond my normal ambitions for myself to be the best human being I can be.  I want to set the best example I can and do all the things everyday that I am supposed to do.  All I need in this world is my little family.  That's it.  I am a very lucky man to have such a beautiful wife and child and I use each and everyday to celebrate them.  I don't normally get excited for days where I am put in the spot light.  I always ask to keep birthdays low key and even on days where I may have hit a nice achievement worthy of a celebration, I prefer to celebrate over a nice meal or day out with Nadia.  This being my first Father's day with Naomi and Nadia, really held a special meaning to me.  Even if I don't usually like to receive any kind of special treatment, this day I knew that I should just let myself soak in all the love that was there to be received.  Nadia more than outdid herself.  It was a perfect day of very thoughtful gifts from Naomi and Nadia - even Olive and Q.  Personalized Papa beer, wonderful cards, a beautiful framed picture and a great bag - but that wasn't it.  We had a nice walk and lunch with Naomi, took some fun pictures and Nadia baked me one of the best cakes ever!  She knows how much I love cake.  I even squeezed in a run with the dogs.  But for me the highlight of the day was spent taking a fun little bath with Naomi helping her splash about.  It was quality time with my loves from the minute I woke up to the moment I lied down for bed.

Thank you Nadia & Naomi for making my first Father's day so special and for showing me once again why I truly am the Happy Hubby.  I love you.

p.s.  I now get 2 cakes a year ;)

Something amazing happened last night!

When I got home and jumped right in to our night time routine with Naomi, Nadia wanted that we try and have her fall asleep herself in the crib - us monitoring of course.  Nadia had been helping Naomi for the past few weeks to get used to self-soothing so that she can manage to fall asleep without being so dependant on us rocking her, or bouncing her.  So we started after her last feeding of the day, dimming the lights like we always do, putting on some nice ambient music and the sounds of a rain forest to fill the room with calm.  Naomi, at this point was changed, fed and pj's on.  Everything a go!  Because this is really my only time with her during the work week, I'm the one who normally puts her to sleep at night, and part of that fun is bouncing and rocking her to sleep because I get to hold her close.  Last night however, we layed her in her crib, pacifier in mouth and I just stood watch.  A little bummed that I couldn't hold her but what happened next was so amazing it was worth it.  Not only was Naomi laying calmly, staring off into space with a wonderous gaze, but she quite literally putting up no fuss as she started to slowly fall asleep into the night.  To put this in perspective, we quite literally have a production that goes on at night to get Naomi to sleep.  It's not a bad thing, but it is a very calculated and sensitive thing to get done the right way so that we all benefit.  We usually place her down in her crib after having rocked her almost to a full sleep.  Sometimes this process is quick and sometimes it can take quite a while.  This time, we placed her in her crib as she was still wide awake, albeit a tired wide awake.  So I sat, I watched.  About all I really did was put her pacifier back in her mouth which she spit out once or twice.  About 20 silent minutes had passed of Naomi rubbing her eyes, turning her head back and forth a little bit, and at one point I swear she was holding the pacifier herself.  Before I knew it, she had fallen into dream land.  No fuss, no crying, no nothing.  It was to date the proudest moment Nadia and I have shared for Naomi thus far.   This was quite the big accomplishment for her.

As parents, this holds a special meaning.  It wasn't just so much about her falling asleep without our help.  It's about us picking up on recent ques that Naomi has been giving us, as if letting us know she is ready for certain kinds of independence.  Last night was like watching a first glimpse of Naomi making a big decision for herself in her little world.  She let us know that she wanted to do this on her own. 

Remarkable. 

 

Bumps in the road

As this blog steadily grows and starts to take on it's shape, my wife had an interesting observation of how everything is starting to form.  She said something to the effect that maybe I should shed a little more light on the not-so peachy stuff.  Meaning that every thing on this blog paints an almost perfect picture.  As if our journey so far with Naomi hasn't come with it's challenges.  And I get this.  I get that I've created a platform here that offers a looking glass into the life that is our little family.  I get that there has been many bumps in the road since Naomi has been born.  Has there been challenges?  With out question.  I guess when I set out to archive Naomi's life from birth, and even further back to when this blog was formed when we first learned that we were pregnant, I acted on an impulse.  An impulse that was sparked with loving motivation to express how I feel about this life that has somehow revealed itself to me.  Hence, the "happy-hubby" name.  I guess I could put some focus on the trials.  It would make for some grounding in reality.  Life is never perfect.  But what I want to say through all this, or at least what I am trying to convey, is that this is what I see.  Even if it is through my own happy distorted point of view, this is what I see happening.  I don't want to dismiss the harder moments and perhaps I will be a little more forthcoming with all the efforts involved in being the best parents we can be.  Maybe that will offer a little more authenticity to the words I write.  But however I form these memories, what's always going to resonate is that this is all a dreamy reality in my mind.  I have this amazing wife and daughter, two akwardly compatible little scruffy dogs, and a career that I never thought possible.  How could this painting 'not' be formed with the most possitive of strokes?  Regardless, the life I live with my wife is like driving on a highway with a vast and rich horizon in front of us.  We have a warm breeze flowing through the open windows and the occasional bump in the road that just makes us hold hands even tighter as we continue pushing forward, following our future.  We've even picked up a few little passengers along the way ;).

Okay Nadia, let's see if I can take your advice :P

 

The Work, Life balance

Not being able to spend a full day with you is really one of the hardest things that I've ever had to do.  I hate that anything would pull me away from you, but unfortunately, that's what many of us have to do in this day and age.  Papa has to work.  I'm very thankful that Nadia is home with you, caring for you in the best possible way.  I may not get to see you very much during the week, but at least I get to spend your last waking moments of each day by helping put you to sleep, and if I'm lucky, I even get to bottle feed you.  Is this enough for me?  No.  I wish I was home all day, every day with you.  The hardest part of the whole thing is that when I get home, you are tired after a long day, and I know you don't always have the energy to give me much attention, but sometimes you grace me with a little smile, and it just puts everything behind me.  It becomes all that matters in that moment.  I like to think you are smiling because you know that Papa is home.  I like to think it's your way of saying, "Don't worry Papa, I'm glad to see you too."  Whatever the reason, I'm glad I'm at least one of the last things you smile at before you go to sleep. 

Thank you for the smiles.

The baby monitor

Today we had a very special evening.  Why so special?  Because for the first time in a long time we had the evening to ourselves thanks to our new friend - the baby monitor!  What a great little thing it is.  We have to remember to find time for ourselves even though we can't get enough of little miss Naomi.  When she's sound asleep, we can now keep a watchful eye on her even if she is sleeping in the other room, cozy with the lights off.  So in honor of our first evening with our new little friend, we veg'd out and even did a load of laundry.  A little time for me and the Wife :)....Not too bad.  

The proud Papa

A lot of loved ones have asked about seeing some pics of the father with baby Naomi.  All I can say is that it's a busy job being the man behind the camera, especially when I have such a beautiful wife and daughter to take pictures of.  Plan on seeing more of me and baby Naomi, especially as Nadia is more available to take pics, but for the time being, here is just a glimpse of one moment :)