I remember the short time that my husband and I were together before children. We would sleep in and drive around visiting all day with no plans. We would usually stop for ice cream at some point (my love language!) and our days were slow and full of love. I thought there was no way I could love this man any more than I do right now.

Then our first baby was born.

Thinking about that time in our life makes me tear up. I remember the drive to the hospital the evening I went into labor when he looked over at me grinning and said, “are you ready to be a mommy?”

I had no idea what I was doing.

He stayed right by my side breathing with me and holding my hand and feeding me ice chips for 6 hours until our beautiful baby girl was placed on my chest at 4:23am. I didn’t think of it at that moment, but when she was born, her daddy was also born. And I thought there was no way I could love this man any more than I do right now.

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Then I watched him be a daddy.

There is something so incredibly sweet about a big serious man talking jibberish to a baby. There were so many times I thought my heart would explode from the love I had for my little family.

We were walking on clouds and were so happy to have a family. When our little girl would see her daddy come through the door her face would light up- and so would his. They have always had such a special bond that grows even closer from year to year.

He would stop everything to listen to her tell a silly story that goes on and on and on. And I thought there was no way I could love this man any more than I do right now.

Then we had a second child.

I didn’t know what to expect when we added another baby to the family. How would our little girl adjust? How would our family dynamic change? Would we have any time for us ever again?

Our little boy was everything I could have ever dreamed of in a son. My husband would read him books, play cars with him, take him outside to dig in the dirt, play catch- do the things that fathers and sons do.

My heart was a puddle of mush in their presence. And I thought there was no way I could love this man any more than I do right now.

Then we added 6 more children.

Hahaha- no really, we did.

I fast forwarded quite a bit there, but you probably don’t want to be reading this all day. Having a large family is such a beautiful thing. Each child is so different from the next, but together they make up our family- like a beautiful bouquet of wild flowers.

My husband knows the best way to parent each child and each of them have a special and unique relationship with him. His face lights up when he comes through the door. I know he is exhausted from working all day, but he makes time for all of them and always kisses me first before asking the kids about their day.

The love he has for me and the kids is something hard to explain in words. And right now I am thinking that there was no way I could love this man any more than I do right now.

But we get to grow old together and watch our children someday have families of their own.

I cannot imagine the next phase of life when our children grow up and start lives of their own. Right now they all sleep under the same roof every night and ride in my van together if we go somewhere. I know this is stage is not permanent- although I sort of wish it was. I love watching my husband be a daddy.

I may have had no idea what I was doing 12 years ago on that drive to the hospital when he asked me if I was ready to be a mommy, but he was definitely ready to become a daddy that day. Our kids are so blessed that he is theirs.

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When a child is born, so is a daddy.

Until next time,