I'm a dad tonight!!!

Ok, before you nice folks go congratulating me on the birth of a child, I have to tell you my youngest is almost 3. But it was today that I think I became a father. Earlier in the day we were driving and the two oldest ones were fussing with each other and I'd gotten sick of telling them to knock it off. The next thing you know some guy that looks just like me, talks just like me and even sounds like me but acted suspiciously like my dad said "don't make me pull this thing over!" I got the chills. But just like the fact that I once owned a Tempo, I suppressed it. Then at dinner there was just a cacophony from three kids that was getting to me. That's when I did it. I introduced the "let's see who can be quietest for the longest game" to the kids. I think I'm officially a dad now.
Next thing on the agenda is to get long gray hairs to sprout from my ears, hike by belt up to my nipples and wander around complaining about how much easier kids these days have it.

Congrats! A real rite of passage.

Now go to the Goodwill and get a ratty bathrobe, matching slippers, and a coffee cup not washed since the Carter administration. Use them every morning. You'll be good.

You are who you are because of your Dad, it's cyclic.

40 years from now your pre-teens will slap themselves on the forehead going "Holy crap, I've become my FATHER!!!"

The world's best compliment.

Dan

Congrats? I both look forward to, and am in fear of the first child I am in charge of. I probably will never have any of my own, as I feel there are enough children in the world without me contributing my DNA to the pool, but the wife and I are considering seriously becoming foster parents. Something about changing a life that may have previously never had a chance, vs. being able to start from scratch, really appeals to me. I'd love to be able to say I made a difference.... and hopefully bring a child up with the same beliefs and openness to other ideas that I was given.

That being said, pretty sure the first day I threaten to pull the car over, I will cry.

You know, I don't think the "don't make me pull this thing over" bit ever worked on a kid. Didn't work on me. I was a kid - what the heck did I care if we pulled over? I'm not the one that's gotta wait for an opening and maneuver the sonuvabitch back onto the road.

It always scared me, because I knew that if it actually got that far, I was gonna get a tanned hide right on the side of the road. This is back when you could beat your children in public and get away with it .

NYG95GA wrote: Congrats! A real rite of passage. Now go to the Goodwill and get a ratty PLAID bathrobe, MIS-matched slippers wear them with black socks, and a coffee cup not washed since the Carter administration. Use them every morning. You'll be good.

fixed....

JeepinMatt wrote: You know, I don't think the "don't make me pull this thing over" bit ever worked on a kid. Didn't work on me.

Oh it worked on us alright! He didn't pull over very much, but if he did, good lord you we sorry. Then you could hear a pin drop (or a 225 slant 6 ping under load) for miles cuz we never made a sound!

It used to break my heart to tell my young daughter that I couldn't afford this or that but I promised her I'd get it for her 'someday' (usually after the holiday when they were on special!).

Then I overheard her telling HER daughter 'you'll just have to wait...maybe you'll appreciate it more!' and I realized I just might have done an okay job after all.

Mine was at Thanksgiving telling my 4 year old "how do you know you dont like it if you have never eaten it before"? My father was in the room also. Fortunately or unfortunately (depending on your out look) at 80 he is mostly deaf and couldnt hear me.

Mine was before my wife and I knew for sure she was pregnant. Chaperoning my friend's 4 children to a play I stopped the boy cold in his tracks before he could jump into a drained fountain. The child's full name left my lips before I even knew it. The boy halted his progress and I almost fell over. That was when I turned into my dad. You always knew it was serious when the middle name was used, and I knew my friend used it to get his son's attention.

My 4-month old son probably doesn't even know his name yet, but I know he'll get the full name treatment eventually.

Great stories!

It's amazing how smart the folks were in retrospect huh?

Congrats! I demand pictures!

4eyes wrote: It's amazing how smart the folks were in retrospect huh?

I have been amazed how smart my parents got as I grew older. My favorite (that I have used) is "Can't never did anything, If you don't try you will never know, and never is a long, long time."