Wordless Wednesday: Father's Day

As a pregnant person, I am a ball of emotions in general. Anger, exasperation, joy, sadness, love - you name it, it's me, at some point and at some ridiculous level. (Feel bad for people who are around me on a regular basis.). This means I have lots of sniffly posts I could be sharing. Lots of mad posts I could be sharing.

And lots of gushy and nostalgic posts I do plan on sharing. You're welcome.

Here's one that won't go in to ton of words, but I think the photos do the talking pretty well ... I am thankful every day that I married such a great guy - one who is smart, hard-working, funny, caring, dedicated, patient and loving, among other stellar qualities. I am even more grateful that he's the father of my children and that they have such a strong man to look up to and learn from, every day. Elle adores him, and I know that Wesley will, too.

Even though Elle was convinced that Father's Day meant that it was also Tim's birthday, we had a nice day celebrating Daddy and spending some coveted family time together, including gifting him with his annual photo present:

Elle's last chance to be the sole star of Tim's Father's Day photo gift (2013).

Daddy's Day, Diva-style (2012).

"What is this green stuff I'm sitting on?" (2011).

We let Daddy sleep in, spent some time at the beach and went out for dinner - I'm not sure who enjoyed the day more, Elle or Tim :)

And two bonus photos ... I was staring at this one all day at work with my heart all melty and my eyes all teary:

Quite possibly my favorite photo ever (Nov. 2011). LOVE these two.
[Photo by Jodi Wells Photography.]

And this one, which makes me smile every time I see it - and we're just weeks away from another tiny person getting to know his daddy (and I'm guessing that while Elle was sleeping on him, Tim was watching the Reds, which will happen a lot with Wesley, too):

A Father's Day letter to Elle

Dear Elle,

Today is Father's Day - our second with you. Baby girl, I don't know if there are adequate words to describe how enamored you are with your daddy. And I can't blame you - he's amazing.

He works so hard - for us, for the newspaper - and does so without complaint. He works late five nights a week and gets up with you five days a week. He does chores around the house, runs errands,  packs your lunch, stocks your diaper bag, plays with you ... basically runs around nonstop and then puts in 10+ hours at the office. He takes you to doctor's appointments, chooses your outfits every day and drops you off at daycare four days a week.

He takes you to swim lessons every day and even saved the day when another child got sick and the mom basically froze. Daddy helped take care of the mess without hesitation. He's that kind of guy, Elle - calm and selfless. The kind of person you always want to have around, and lucky for us, we have him :)

He's got a seemingly endless amount of patience. He never raises his voice to you unless you're putting yourself in danger (like the let's-stand-on-the-couch shenanigans you've been pulling lately). He doesn't like to see you sad or mad, so you're extremely likely to hear "Yes" from him. And you're well aware of this. You ask him for "Dessert, Daddy?" When he tells you to "ask Mommy," you look at me for a nanosecond and then direct the repeated "Dessert, Daddy?" plea to him. If I ask him why he did something (like give you a second pack of fruit snacks for your afternoon snack), I receive the seemingly obvious answer of "Because she wanted them." 

You beg to watch "pig movie" (aka "Babe") and he obliges, because it makes you so happy and you're so emphatic about it. You possessively yell "MY Daddy!" if anyone comes near him. You love to know where he is when he's not with you: "Daddy work? Daddy gym? Daddy outside?" The other morning, your first words were "Go see Daddy?" When I told you he was golfing, you said "Go see Daddy golfing?" You bolt from my lap whenever you hear him come home from the gym, and I hear you saying "Daddy Daddy Daddy" as you hurry down the hall. When he's working, you solemnly tell me "See Daddy tomorrio" because you know he'll be there when you wake up.

 Note the golf ball in your hand.

He's taught you so much - from colors to shapes and letters to numbers. You've already developed a respect for and interest in several sports. You cuddle with him while you both watch baseball. Your recent unprompted cheer of "Go Reds!" nearly left me in a puddle. You proudly bring him golf ball after golf ball.

You two have a special bond that has only strengthened in these two years. You trust him completely, and he would do anything to make sure he never disappoints you. The love you two have for each other makes my heart so full it feels like it could burst on a regular basis. You adore him, and he adores you.

Today is a day that draws attention to some other pretty special men in your life, including G, who has worked hard to provide for his four children (including your favoritest mommy ever) and is one of the smartest, most driven and stubborn people you'll ever know (you've likely inherited many, if not all, of those qualities). And Grandpa, who taught high school math for more than three decades - something you can't do without patience, intelligence and dedication, and raised two successful, compassionate sons. We're extremely lucky to have them both in our family.

You've changed SO much from last year's photos - you're way more
mobile and expressive, which made the photos quite a challenge :)

Belle, I hope you someday realize that you are so, so blessed to have such an amazing father. When Daddy and I were dating, I knew that he'd be a great father, but there's no way I could have imagined just how great. I've fallen in love with him all over as I've seen how fantastic he is with you and how head-over-heels in love he is with you, and I pray that you always know how lucky you are.

Love,
Mommy

Father's Day

For Tim's first Father's Day, I wanted to give him something special. I was struck with inspiration while looking at photos that a friend had had taken at a portrait studio for her son's first birthday. I started brainstorming and *thought* I had an original idea, but apparently I am not as original as first thought because I've seen it done several times now :)

But! I've intended from the start to make this a yearly gift - subbing out the photos from year to year until Elle is 18. And if there are more baby sea cows in the future, they'll be included in the photos.

Elle hates grass, so she doesn't exactly look happy/comfortable/pleased in these photos :) We went with basic white letters this year but can paint or decorate them in the future to mix things up.

I guest-blogged this week over at amykolz.com, and I wrote about how grateful I am that Tim is my other half in this crazy adventure that is parenthood, and how the bond that he shares with Elle melts my heart.

He wants such big things for her -

for her to have opportunities,

happiness and more hair.

Elle is so much like her father -

from her looks to her personality -

and she is so in love with him.

Absolutely adores him.

I see her turn toward his voice

any time he walks in the room -

no matter what she is doing -

or watch her face light up

when he comes to get her after a nap.

And I see he feels the same way -

even after a long work week

and little sleep,

he greets her with enthusiasm

matched only by the Cincinnati Reds

winning a big game in the final at-bat.

The first time Tim held Elle.

For the rest of my post (with more photos!), please visit Amy's blog.

Today, I'm wishing all father's a happy Father's Day - a day that honors men who play such an important role in the lives of so many. I've been fortunate enough to have been blessed with some pretty great dads in my life, from the father of my precious daughter to my own father.

Happy Father's Day, Dad! Love you!