When Daddy Comes Home

I don't know if I've ever written a post about this or not, because it somehow seems familiar to me.  Maybe I've just written it a few times in my head.

This is a tribute to David as Daddy in our home.  My children LOVE him.  They really, really love him.  And it's no wonder why - he's a pretty lovable guy.  But what has hit me lately is how much he is a PART of them.  There's the age-old debate about whether we are more of a consequence of nature or nurture.  And I don't know that it is an either/or answer.  But I definitely see and feel the nurture part of David in my children.

For example, it's prayer time.  The kids are ti-i-red, and so are we.  As we round up overnight diapers and pajamas and milk and scriptures, they sometimes get more and more rowdy by the second.  Pretty soon, they are running around the house, jumping on their beds, and - BAM - Abby tackles Isaac, screaming, "Tackle" and laughing as loud as she can.  Isaac reacts in one of two ways: He laughs OR he cries.  Not a real cry, but a cry that he thinks is going to get him attention, or at least annoy his sister who just literally PINNED him to the ground in a millisecond!  Abby's reaction to him laughing or crying is usually the same - tackle him again as fast as she can and let out yet another squeal of triumph!

She gets that from Daddy.

Or when Abby and Isaac are mutually playing tackle and loving it.  Suddenly, Isaac lifts Abby's shirt up and bites her on the stomach.  Initial reaction of most toddler mom's: Biting stage, explain biting is wrong, have some sort of punishment, and hope it sticks in.  Not so in our house.  That WAS my initial reaction until an image flashed before my eyes as I was moving to act on my impulse.  The image was one of Daddy coming home from work, tackling the kids, then scooping them up in his arms and pretending to eat them like corn on the cob, tickling their sides with his teeth in the process.

He learned that from Daddy. He's a little sketchy in the particulars, but the general idea was right there.

Or when you're sitting on the sofa, feeding a newborn or reading or typing or whatever.  Suddenly Abby comes up and starts to tickle you as hard and as fast as she can, yelling, "Tickle, tickle, tickle!"  Mostly it hurts, but the concept is there.  And she's laughing as if she were the one being tickled the whole time she's doing it.

She gets tickle wars from Daddy.

Or when we're sitting at the dinner table tonight and Abby, who asked me to help her eat her food, begins to chant, "Chuga tuga tuga tuga woo woo" as I go to put food in her mouth.  Then, just as I'm about to put the spoon into her mouth, she yells, "Stop!  No!  Horsey! Ee up Ee up Ee up -- (whinnies) Ee up Ee up Ee up -- (whinnies)."

She gets that mostly from Daddy.

Or when you go to put food in Isaac's mouth and he pretends to take a big bite and then chew it - over-emphasized chewing of the food that is still sitting on the spoon.  Yes, that also comes from Daddy when Daddy is trying to get them to eat and says, "Okay - Daddy take a bite, Isaac take a bite.  Ready, Daddy (insert fake bite and exaggerated chewing) - and now Isaac (typically insert real bite and chewing -- until recently when he figured it out)."  And he does it with that teasing, silently laughing twinkle in his eye.  He gets that one from Daddy as well.

My kids have the gift of laughter.  And they get a LOT of it from their Daddy!  He plays with them, teases them, wrestles with them. tackles them, tickles them, and loves, loves, loves them.  And seeing and feeling HIM in THEM always makes me smile . . . or laugh . . . (or cry when they get a little TOO into their rough and tumble play).  But always makes me so grateful that they have a daddy like him!