fatherhood

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Dear Holly: You are a Little Doll Who Has Come to Life

3 years, 11 months.

Dear Holly,

This week, Mommy and I completed the difficult task of narrowing down the 20 professional portraits taken at your school to just 3. Actually, we were not successful.

Because we ended up paying extra money so we could get 5 instead.

The easiest way to summarize how I feel about these photos of you:

You are a doll.

For me, it’s truly coming to the realization that if toy companies needed a real life girl to use as a model for making dolls, they would use your picture to base it off of.

You are a little doll who came to life.

Love,

Daddy

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Dear Holly: You Read Me Bible Stories While I Cooked Dinner

3 years, 10 months.

Yesterday evening after work, your brother chose to tag along with Mommy as she visited the chiropractor. To my surprise, you were totally okay with staying home with me as I prepared dinner.

So as I had a pot of water going for you and your brother’s Annie’ s mac and cheese, a pot of water for brown rice pasta for Mommy and me, and a skillet of hamburger meat I was cooking for the sauce, you remained the whole time on the living room chair with your children’s bible.

You were “reading” aloud through dozens of Bible stories, back to back:

“Then Jonah was in the big fish for 3 days and then Daniel saw the lions but they didn’t eat them, then David threw rocks at the big man, and then Jesus was in the cave…”

You specifically kept inserting “Judah” into many of the stories. I take it he was the go-to name to use when you didn’t recognize the character in the picture.

I am also assuming Judah is the name of one of your classmates.

You did a great job reading Bible stories to me while I cooked dinner. I am very proud of you.

Love,

Daddy

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Dear Jack: How You Avoided a Nap While Mommy and I Watched a Movie

9 years, 3 months.

Dear Jack,

Last Sunday, Mommy and I needed an hour to finish the second half of the movie we rented from Redbox. While it is not uncommon for you and your sister to need to take a nap on Sunday afternoon, it was apparent to me that you both were full of energy.

Therefore, I explained to you both that if you could independently figure out how to entertain yourself downstairs while Mommy and I finished the movie upstairs, I would let you forgo naps.

You both agreed to the deal.

An hour later, when our movie was over and we came downstairs, we found the source of your entertainment.

Using the Noah’s Ark tent your Uncle Al and Sharon got you several years ago, you and your sister collected as many blankets and pillows as you could find and filled it up.

Ultimately, it became something like a swimming pool.

You and your sister took turns running up to and attempting to jump high enough to jump inside.

It was a plan that came together. We’ll have to try this again sometime.

Love,

Daddy

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Dear Holly: That Sauce That Doesn’t Make My Mouth Hurt

3 years, 9 months.

Dear Holly,

As you are now approaching your 4th birthday, your eating habits are transitioning into “real meals”, as opposed to just a series of fruit pouches and different versions of mac and cheese.

You pretty much daily eat baby carrots and chicken. Last week, you requested to me, “Daddy, I want that sauce that doesn’t make my mouth hurt.”

Through a little bit of deductive reasoning, I figured out you were asking for Ranch dressing to dip your carrots and chicken in.

To a 3 year-old, that’s the best way to request Ranch dressing; to disassociate it from Daddy’s hot sauce you see me eating with every meal.

Granted, you’ve never had any of my hot sauce, but you want to make sure you don’t!

Love,

Daddy

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Dear Holly: Getting the Purple Glove Treatment for the Flu

3 years, 9 months.

Dear Holly,

Last Friday afternoon, I received the call from your school that you had a temperature of 105 degrees! I took you to doctor and confirmed what your school had accurately predicted: You officially had the flu.

The doctor made it clear you would be contagious for the next week and were not allowed to go back to school for that long.

I was very impressed with how well you handled yourself during the entire doctor visit. You started getting a bit restless there towards the end, as you kept trying to tell me something while the doctor was explaining the process of giving you medicine.

“Oh, I forgot,” I explained to the doctor. “Holly is hoping she can take care a pair of those purple medical gloves you have there in the box hanging on the wall.”

That’s all it took to make you happy, despite how physically horrible you were feeling.

You wore then on the ride home. You wore them to bed. And you wear them the next day while you played with your toys.

Getting the flu meant you needed the purple glove treatment!

Love,

Daddy