my baby daddy

brand new daddy, joe & baby jonah just minutes after he was born 12.12.03

just a few days after returning home from the hospital after jonah was born, joe took on one of his fatherly duties to help change baby's diaper. he took baby jonah from me just down the hall into the baby room to the changing table. i assume all was well at first, he took the old diaper off, wiped jonah's little bottom clean then went to reach for the new diaper. then suddenly joe comes running down the hall [sans baby] with a wet mark up and down the front of his shirt. a little startled, i asked him what was wrong, but he didn't answer. he just turned around to walk back to the baby room when i noticed another wet mark up and down the back of his shirt. confused now, i followed him back to the changing table where jonah was still laying, naked and a little wet himself, in places. joe still was not letting me in on the reasoning for his compulsive sprint up and down the hall, so i just observed and sized up the situation while joe did finally get jonah all diapered up again. what i concluded is while joe was reaching for the new diaper, jonah spontaneously felt the need to relieve himself straight up through the air and joe's innocently bystanding shirt was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. frozen from the shock, joe didn't think to cover up baby jonah's little winky when jonah decided that felt so good, he's going to give it another go. this time joe was really quick-thinking and turned to r-u-n, but not before jonah got him one last time on his way out.

daddy's improved over the years, yet will never fully acclimate to the diaper changing. to this day, every time he changes a dirty diaper it's commenced with "OMG! oh, that stinks." even the boys know this. they lay down on the changing table and if daddy hasn't said it yet, they will. or if it's mama's turn they'll say, "say oh my gosh, mama. stinky." it's true.

we love you daddy and are so proud of all the daddy things that you are and that you've learned to do. happy father's day!