Head First

The other afternoon my husband and the kids were on the back porch playing while I got dinner ready in the kitchen.  I heard the kids giggling uncontrollably, and I smiled and chopped some vegetables and thought, “Ahhhh, perfection.”  And as the giggling continued to travel even deeper into their bellies, I decided to find out what was so funny. 

I leaned over and peaked out of the window and saw my husband teaching them how to go down the slide headfirst into a homemade ball pit.

I took a deep breath, counted to ten, then asked said husband to come inside for a minute.

I must have had “the look” on my face.

“What?!” he said, with the hint of a smile.

“Babe…” I said, while trying to project an are-you-SERIOUS look.

And in that moment I realized us Mamas and Dadas – well, we’re just different.

And thank goodness. Because if it weren’t for the Dadas, life would be all matching clothes and safe choices and balanced meals and following rules and staying clean. 

At least it would be that way in this house.

And yes, I know Dadas do play an essential part in child-raising and child-rearing and rule-making.

But…

In our house, it’s Dada who reminds us to have more fun. To say “Who cares?!” if the laundry needs to be folded or dishes need to be cleaned, pushing us out the door to spend the afternoon at the pool instead.   It’s Dada who will drop whatever he’s doing to say yes as the kids yell, “Outside! Outside! Outside!” It’s Dada who is willing to throw our son eight feet above his head over, and over, and over again as he giggles ferociously. (Ok, probably not eight feet, but it sure does look that way to me as I hold my breath and close my eyes on the sidelines.)

Sure, I help us stay on schedule and make sure everyone has their basic necessities and keep us organized and clean and fed and on-time.

And I love my family so much it hurts.

But I’m so thankful for Dada, who reminds us that it’s okay to push the boundaries and veer off course a little bit and let a to-do list go unchecked and slide into life headfirst, all in the name of getting the most out of every moment we’ve been given.

Cheers to the Dadas!