Time for the Littlest Show Off

Our plan tonight was to have my wife take the two oldest shopping for my birthday while I stayed home with the baby. At first I was excited to have the evening alone with her. We don't get much one-on-one time. Then, when I realized she would just calmly crawl around and play with toys, I was immediately tempted to get things done. In my mind I thought, "She doesn't care!" Keeping this blog has helped me to be a little more self-aware when it comes to those kinds of impulses, and I decided to try and fight it off by reading her a few books and wrestling around with her (in a baby-friendly way, of course). Suddenly, she started pushing herself up from the edge of the couch (after reading) or from my belly (while wrestling) and stand up on her own for a couple of seconds at a time. She'd then turn to me and smile for approval. Of course, I was excited for her and clapped and cheered. She must have liked the reaction because she did it several times more. My excitement then went up another level when my wife came back home and said, "She hasn't done that for me yet." Finally! Daddy gets a first! It makes me feel good that she wanted to show off for me. Time well spent.