I
had my first Mother’s Day last month and now it is my husband’s turn for his
first Father’s Day. He gets to spend it
at home with Baby while Mama works all weekend at the hospital. That is basically the story of our
lives. I am one of many
mothers-in-medicine whose careers are made possibly by supportive partners.
This
arrangement is challenging at times, but allows Baby to develop a special bond
with his Daddy. It is wonderful to see
Baby’s entire face light up (often with a happy dance as well) when he sees
Daddy come into a room or hears his voice.
Although
Daddy can’t breastfeed, he has other unique duties. He is the designated solid food giver. Baby sits on Daddy’s lap for dinner time and
puts his little hand on Daddy’s big hand to help guide the spoon. With his superior upper body strength, he is
the baby flyer and bouncer and car-seat carrier. He is better at lowering sleepy Baby smoothly
into his bed.
I
love watching them play together and laugh at each other. I am looking forward to seeing how their
relationship evolves as Baby grows up. I
am so thankful that he will have such a strong male role model: a man who is
kind, smart, generous, patient, respectful.
A man who can coordinate biomedical research and manage multi-site
databases, and also cook, bake, and do laundry.
I wish every little boy – and little girl – could have a daddy like
that.
I
am also thankful for the father figures in my life, who will be grandfather
figures to him. I am blessed with an
amazing dad of my own, a fabulous godfather, and a number of male mentors. Each one can play a special role in Baby’s
life too.
