no matter how old, outdated, or mature you might find your mom and I, we love to have fun. we love to laugh, push each others buttons, and try to find the humor in life. as an adult, we have responsibilities to quite a few things- bills, pets, family, and now you. in making sure responsibilities are taken care of we can lose sight of the fun, and I hope you learn to laugh and smile and always remind us that happiness and laughter is why we’re all here.

once we found out when to expect you in late 2018, adulthood really came into focus. it was no longer ‘life as-is’. We had a deadline. We needed to have things together by early to mid september, no excuses. you were holding a one way ticket, and your train wasn’t being delayed for anything. your mom and I had frank discussions about the future- really for the first time since our wedding. after we were married we were living life and seeing where things led, but with really no concrete milestones. just us, franklin, and olive in our townhouse, thinking we might move, maybe not, who knows?

now, we had to know. we had to know if we could buy a house, where we might live, and if we would be stuck in the townhouse we were renting. it wasn’t a terrible place, to be fair. the house was right near your mom’s work, and I could get to my office fairly easily. what wasn’t ideal was mice in the basement and being on top of one another, and neither of those issues would work with a newborn baby.

you might come to know by the time you read these that your dad isn’t one for taking life; your dad doesn’t hunt because he doesn’t really have to. your dad enjoys target shooting and building guns as a hobby, but isn’t into hunting. when it came to the mice and the potential harm bacteria they carry could do to you and your mom while you were developing, there was no choice. it was time to wage war. a few weeks and a lot of traps later, the mice were gone. your dad saw a few get trapped in traps, and had to dispatch one himself because it was sick and actually made its way into the kitchen.

adulthood.

by then we had started talking with grandma and grandpa about house buying, shopping, and lending. we had a bit saved from our wedding, and your dad’s new job allowed him to save a bit for a down payment, so it seemed a good time to start. your mom worked so hard to organize everything- realtor selection, mortgage documents, everything. i did what i could, but without her organization and drive, it couldn’t have been done.

nothing in this world would stop her from bringing you home to the house you would grow up in, and painting a nursery in that home for you. nothing.

i saw in her the same drive and passion she had shown years ago when she helped me get my studies back on track and when she got me in line to graduate from undergrad. the same drive and passion she held me to when i promised her my best everything at our wedding. She wanted the best for you- a home where you would grow and love, and be loved.

the home i promised her, the home i never had and thought I’d never have, with a daughter i never thought i’d be blessed with, and a woman i’ll never deserve. all of it gracing my life

because i promised her a dachshund.