Truth Be Told: One of the Good Ones

Father's Day is tomorrow..
June 16th marks Rob's first Father's Day. I believe that today will mean more and more to him each year. This year will be special because it's his first as a Daddy. I'm writing in the dark, with the glow from the t.v. and computer lighting the room. Rob sits in the rocking chair he bought me for Christmas, with a very exhausted little girl in his arms. He busies himself with his Iphone, patiently waiting for her to be in a deep enough sleep to dare put her down. She is teething and has a bit of a cold. We took her out to the Show n' Shine's Annual Dance In The Streets tonight. She was out late, but eventually fell asleep in a friend's arms. As we walked home, the air began to cool and the melodic jerking and bumping of the stroller, kept Alina asleep. It wasn't until a street light lit Alina's buggy, that we saw two bright eyes looking up at us. She was awake, just in time for us to bring her home to bed. She began the screaming as we entered the house and carried on for about ten or fifteen minutes. Normally Alina is a pretty easy going girl, but she is a baby after all and babies do cry. Her daddy tried all sorts of tricks as I sat with my head in my hands, stressed that she was so upset. This is the very reason why Rob deserves a great day tomorrow. He is an incredible dad. He knows not to get upset or frustrated with Alina or the fact that she's upset. He tells himself that she was happy minutes before and goes through all of the different things that could be causing her to be upset. Once he checks off.. changing a diaper, feeding her, opening her sleeper so she cools off.. he takes her to our room to look at the ceiling fan- a usual favourite of Alina's. But the screaming continues, tears running down her red, angered, scrunched up little face. He then tries putting her in her car seat and swinging her back and fourth- again another trick that usually calms her. Nope, not the case tonight. He doesn't let the screaming bother him and keeps his mind on the task at hand. He tells me that he knows she is not really upset, because minutes before she was smiling and completely content. She has just gotten herself worked up and needs something. But what is that something? Finally he puts on a striped shirt because he knows she likes looking at the pattern and sits in the rocking chair, with her against his chest shushing and patting her back. Within minutes, her breathing slows and her cries turn into soft whimpers. Our baby is asleep in my favourite place; against Rob's chest. That has been a spot that has given me much comfort over the last eight years. A place where I can rest my head and feel completely safe. Turns out it's a new favourite place for our little girl. Rob's a natural. He is going to thrive at being a dad and each year he will only get better.
Tomorrow I will celebrate his first of many Father's Days to come. I won't let losing my dads shadow the day. I will think of how lucky my daughter is to have such an amazing daddy in her life. I will appreciate that this man is in my life, keeping us happy and safe. And I will smile and feel proud that I found him and chose him to be a part of my life. He's one of the good ones..