M - A fancy date with my baby girl

Well, the 'baby' part of this title isn't really accurate any more but I haven't yet let go of the notion. To the left is my favorite picture of the last five years. I remember the moment on September 21st, 2004 like it was five minutes ago yet I fear that won't always be the case.

As Dana noted recently, Katie has been on a bit of a journey to stop sucking her wittle thumb. Having achieved her first milestone and as promised, we set out on a right fancy daddy date.

First, I have to make note of a few personal comments. Prior to having a little girl I was convinced that I'd treat her no differently than my son. It's not that I planned to treat one 'good' and the other 'bad.' It's just that when it came to issues of occasional discipline and fun activities together and such, it seemed logical (note the use of the word "logical") that life would pretty well flow seamlessly between the two.

Then we went and had this little blue-eyed, blond, milky smooth skinned little girl. And she learned to call me da-da even long after she could very easily say dad or daddy. And she learned to tell me how much she loved me at just the right moments. And I smile instantly when I look at her picture or think about her servant heart or the funny things she says.

It's also a fact that I have to work harder to be close to her. With Noah, it's pretty easy. He likes anything that involves horsepower, explosions, wild animals or a scoreboard. While Katie will work hard to like anything Noah likes (he is still the number one man in her life), her real interest remains in things of a fluffier, softer, and 'much more pinker' variety. As such, my interest must be in such things at times as well.

So it was on the night of December 22nd that we finally got to have our date to Inspirations Tea Room in Edmond. This was a dress up, wear a tie, buy a corsage kind of date, mind you. This was a date that needed to celebrate the enormity of Katie's success thus far.

Honestly I was pretty excited to give her a corsage (thanks to my lovely bride for arranging that one). Of course Katie had never heard of such a thing and was a little confused at first why one would want to wear a flower on your wrist! But soon she figured it out and liked it, I think. Her little wrist is so tiny it couldn't even fill up the elastic band attached to the flower.

From the menu we ordered for Katie the "Princess Tea Party for One." This included a couple of tiny sandwiches including a PB&J with sprinkles around the edge. Of course there were plenty of desserts. Katie was most excited about the tiny tea pot full of pink lemonade.








































Ultimately she finally came around on the idea of the corsage.













There was ONE chocolate-covered strawberry on the tray which resulted in...of course...us having to order more chocoberries. We each had another and saved the other four to share with mom and Noah at home.














The restaurant was really decked out for Christmas and of course we had to pose together for one more picture. Katie frequently asks me why I like pictures so much and I can't imagine why she would even ask. :-)














Amidst all the sweetness though I have to let you know that THIS is my little girl. She is my CRAZY little wild hair that wraps herself around my heart and my emotions as effortlessly as she bats her beautiful blue eyes.




















Katie is definitely not my affectionate child. That honor goes clearly to Noah. He can't go to bed at night without me lying down beside him and talking for a while. Just tonight Katie told Dana to pass along to me that she's sorry, but I better not come see her tonight because she'll probably be too sleepy! That little heartbreakin' thing! So I suppose it's all the more special when she does actually show me affection or give me a hug first. Often when I tell her I love her she frustratingly tells me "you already told me that!"

Sometimes she just says simply "I know!" Then I think, "No, you really don't. You just can't right now. Not until you stand where I'm standing."

As one of my favorite writers Tony Woodlief has written:

“I love you. Do you know that?”

“Yeah,” he says, “I know.”

"No you don’t, little one. Not until you hear the laughter of your own child like angels singing, and feel your heart flowing over. And when you do, remember these two things: that I have loved you this way, and that God loves you even more, with love that is unshakable, unchangeable, unfathomable. Remember this great passion with which you are loved, and carry it with you..."