Today our son is 6 weeks old. Sometimes I want him to stay this way forever, small & cute. I want to hold him in my arms always.
OTOH, I think about when he grows up and what he will be like and what he will do. Will he love sports? Will he love reading? Will he want to do ballet? I remember back in college when a girl I was dating asked me, "What if your son wants to do ballet?" I remember immediately answering, "no way"! I've changed. If my son wants to do ballet, fine. (But Taiga, when you're old enough to read this, I hope you'll pick another activity, like basketball, haha). But to be honest, my wife and I just want to raise a boy with a big heart and a little bit smart would be nice too. :) OK, I admit I am "oyabaka" which literally translates to "fool parent". Hopefully I'm not a fool but I guess I am a "doting daddy".
I remember another question that my good friend David once asked me about 20 years ago: "Would you rather have your son get an athletic scholarship or an academic scholarship"? I remember answering, "athletic scholarship for sure". At that time, I think I was thinking more of my own pride. Not that I wouldn't love for him to get one, but an academic scholarship would be my answer today. Actually, I would be happy with any kind of scholarship! I say this realizing that I'll be in my 60's when he gets to be that age, LOL! For some reason I just had a flashback to when I was a kid, maybe 8 or 9 years old. I remember asking my dad, "What if I got a football scholarship to Stanford"? (we must have been watching a Stanford game on TV) His answer was, "I'll buy you a Porsche" (my dream car). I remember thinking to myself that I might actually be playing football at Stanford and driving a Porsche. Well, nothing wrong with letting your kid dream! :)
Here's a list of things I have learned so far:1) How many diapers a baby can go through in one day
2) How much milk a baby can drink in one day
3) How much milk a mother can make in one day (and how big her milk tanks can get) hehe
4) How loud (and funny) a baby's fart can be
5) How good it feels when my baby falls asleep on top of me
Here's something I still wonder about:
What's he thinking about when he spends all that time staring up at the ceiling?
Here a couple of pictures from our visit to the shrine to celebrate "omiyamairi". This is similar to a Christian Baptism. It takes place one month (or thereabouts) after the baby's birth. The purpose is to pray for the baby's health. BTW, I promise this Blog won't turn into a "My Baby Blog" but then again, I am "oyabaka", haha!