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Saturday, June 2, 2012

Fathers play such an important role!

I'm entering the teething stage now with my almost 5 month old daughter and I can't believe how hard it is dealing with this alone.  It reminds me back to the early weeks with my daughter and the constant crying and waking during the night and day.  Thankfully, back then my husband was off work and I had him to lean on.  Now that he's away for work, I am realising just what an important role he played during those hard times (and of course every minute he is home).  During the early "sleep deprivation insanity" stage of my daughters life, I leaned on my husband so much to hold us all together.  I remember feeling like I was being subjected to the Chinease water torture, where every time I would set my baby in her bassinet and I would begin to drift off to sleep, she would start crying again, just like another cold drop of water on my forehead.  The only time she would sleep was when my husband or I were holding her.  So my husband volunteered to hold her while he played video games during the night.  It was awesome, when I could hear him playing his game, I knew it was safe for me to allow myself to go into a deep sleep.  It was my safe time.  He did this all night sometimes for me, only waking me for feedings.  Come morning, I would take over and allow him to sleep.

I know the sleep deprivation was just as hard on him as it was on me, but my husband Scott was able to fake it so much better then me.  He would talk in a calm voice and assure me everything was OK and she was just doing her "baby thing".  I am not nearly as talented as him at faking my emotions.  I appreciated his fake good mood so much, it kept me sane and gave me the strength to hold myself together.  He knew just how to act and behave to keep everything running smooth and I think he deserved father and husband of the year award for his actions!!!  He was always able to get me to laugh, when I wanted to cry or bite someones head off during my lack of sleep mood.  One of his VERY important roles at the beginning was helping me breastfeed.  Most dads feel left out during this process but I needed his help with latching desperately every time.  The nurse at the hospital told me to compress my boob as soon as my baby latched on so she would get lots of milk and it would encourage her to latch on properly and stay that way.  Since it took both of my hands to hold the baby and myself properly, I needed him to do the compressions.  You should have seen Scott's big silly grin knowing his new job was squeezing my boob....LOL  Enough to make me laugh when I really didn't feel like laughing at all!!

Now that I am going through another difficult stage, this time without my valuable partner, I am reminded just how important dads are.  He writes me funny emails to keep my spirits up when he is on the road and one in particular, I feel has a special message at the end, so with his permission, I am adding it to the end of this blog.  I hope it makes you laugh as it did me, and I hope my blog makes you go hug your hubby and tell him just what an important role he has in all this.

The following "blog" is about my husband's trip on an Air Canada flight as a passenger, where he was being flown to Newark to position for his week of flying.
The following is written by Scott, my husband: 

I get on board the airplane, it's nearly a full flight. I have one of the few, if perhaps the only empty, seat beside me. Up a few rows is a couple with twin girls screaming their heads off. The APU was broken, and the ground air conditioner was unserviceable as well. The airplane was well over 100 degrees inside (that's 4096 degrees in the "wendy" scale). The crew opens the door at either end of the airplane to get some airflow. I guess hot blowing air is better than hot air that is not blowing. Then, they decide to get the lav. serviced! So now not only it is stinking hot, it's now hot and stinking! I'm so glad though, because I have a row to myself. The twins upfront are still screaming. Wendy, your fallopian tubes would have been sucking up against your spine!
Finally, the nice A/C flight attendant comes up to the couple and says to the Mom, if the girls would be happier separated, there's an empty row near the back, mine. The distraught mom, god bless her, takes the F/A's advice, and parks herself next to me with one of the screaming two. My earplugs were in the overhead bin, and I was too nice to ask her to get up.

Then, "Captain Scott", turns back into a dad. I helped the little girl, play with the safety card and the barf bag, and she couldn't have been happier. I put the Wiggles on the TV for her too. The mom was so grateful. The little angel fell asleep right after take-off, and slept throughout the short flight.
 
So, sometimes when I'm away not being a Dad, I still end up being a Dad.
 
God I love him, bless him for helping that mom in need.  That's an example right there of a good man!