Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Dad Experiment: Final Thoughts

I learned A LOT about each of my children these past 4 days

Let me share FOUR:
1. J needs independance as well as daddy protection.....on her terms (So, maybe i can be a little flexible with bedtime in conjunction with reading to her in my arms)
2. D needs me to love him for who he is and what he likes. (Sports IS MY THING....not HIS THING). So I will learn to love what he loves....he told me this summer he wants to do Astronomy and Chess with me.
3. JP needs exercise every day. He has a lot of energy and needs to work it off - this weekend we literally played baseball, football, basketball and soccer CONSECUTIVELY. Need to encourage his athleticism.
4. A is extremely bright. Very engaging with language and play in a group or solo. Loves to have bare feet and I suspect she will be athletic as well.

They know this time is over. Each of them wanted a BIG HUG and be placed in a HOT DOG Blanket tonight. I blessed each of them, gave them LOVE POWER and told them how much I enjoyed this time with them.

Final comment from J - "Dad, I am going to miss you when you go back to work"

You know what....I miss them already.

Tired Dad = Happy Kids

Last Day of flying solo with the kids. Happenings were unexpected but with 12 more hours to go, hoping for a smooth landing :-)

Very simply, I am tired. Not so much physically. But mentally drained on keeping up on homework, drop off times, play dates, more homework, snacks, meals, who likes what food, diaper changes, wardrobe changes....basically managing it all.

Honestly - I love them more today than yesterday. It's hard to explain (unless you are a Dad) but I truly love being with them. As a Dad, I don't do that consistently (its hard to with work) so these moments (even unexpected) I am trying to step it up. There is a certain sense of guilt of not being around for every life moment....but I am coming to grips with that.

Let's see what the rest of the day has to offer...