As young as you feel

I don’t think the reality of being a parent has really sunk in yet. Which is strange considering everything I’ve already experienced. Seeing your baby being born is the kind of magic trick you won’t forget, and the first few weeks of parenting? It doesn’t get more real than that. But the concept of being a parent is still wonderfully new.

There are days when Gina and I look at the baby and say, “can you believe it?” It’s not that we’re in denial. It’s more like it’s too good to be true. I think everyone finds themselves surprised by their lives at one point or another. Like, how did I get to be 40? Or when did my baby sister grow up? My dad is 77 years old with 15 grandchildren. But in his heart, I bet it feels like he just met my mom.

Thursday night, I was holding Ryan while he was fast asleep. It’s true when they say a sleeping baby looks just like an angel. I’d been thinking a lot about how it was the National Day of Prayer, and if you asked how I felt to be a father, I would have said grateful. I got teary-eyed looking at my son.

How about that? I’m a dad.