I hereby dedicate this post to Paul.

I had grand intentions to write a post about Superdad Paul on Father's Day. Didn't happen. I had even better intentions of writing a post about both his Superdad and Amazing Husband abilities on our wedding anniversary last month. Also didn't happen.  I finally decided to make time to sit down and write this post after coming home from a 3-day work trip to a clean house and happy kids. 

Paul and I always laugh about us feeling like we have reverse roles in the suburban stereotype, at least when it comes to our work lives.  Paul's the teacher, I'm the lawyer.  He gets summers home with the kids, I don't.  Sometimes I have to travel for work, while he rarely does.  He drops off and picks up from daycare, I pick them up when I can (average once a month).  Many times, I'm rushing home, hoping traffic doesn't prevent me from missing dinner time, bath time, etc. The situation is a result of us loving what we do, even though I have been known to regularly shed a tear or two million over feelings of guilt about the lack of time I spend with my little ones.

Despite regular feelings of guilt, I cannot be thankful enough for Paul.  I know I'm lucky to have him, but sometimes the business and exhaustion of everyday life strips away my ability to step back and really and truly be grateful.  But the more time I spend with other people with small children, the more I realize how naturally fatherhood came for him.  Paul never thinks twice about bearing the brunt end with our little crazies  He entertains, feeds, disciplines, and deals with every other complication that comes with parenting toddlers.  And while he does all of it without complaint, I'm fairly certain he has a mental countdown until it's time to head back to school. :)

This summer, he has his hands full with two toddlers.  Part of their routine has been to expel energy first thing in the morning.  This typically requires a visit to a park.

 

Or the zoo.

The afternoons are trickier, however, because it's just too hot for outdoor activities.  This requires creativity because you have to find locations that are kid-friendly and not overly crowded.  They typically end up at the mall, Chick-Fil-A, or Jumpstreet.  The major downside to these locations is being confined indoors with poorly behaved children [Note: I could spend days blogging about the mother who refuses to parent her child in public so she can play on her iPhone.  Instead, I will say this: Parents (especially moms), quit letting your kids act like hoodlums and pay attention to them.  I'm tired (and so is Paul) of yelling at them when they push my kids and act like total brats.  Facebook isn't THAT interesting.]

 

The boys love getting to spend time with Dad because they get to do lots of special Dad stuff. Like go to the donut store.

I, personally, love having Paul home for the summer because he can take care of the stuff that's slipped through the cracks, like making sure Henry has shoes that can fit when he goes through yet another growth spurt.

But for those of you that are wondering, there are a few things Paul does not do.  He has drawn a line on a few things which he claims are "Mom" things.  The first is fingernails - the man has NEVER clipped a single fingernail on either child.  I hate cutting fingernails more than anything, so if you see my children and wonder why their nails are so long, this is why.  

Additionally, he leaves the hair cutting up to me.  I usually don't think too much about their hair until I suddenly look at them and realize they look like a girl.  Or Doc Brown (yes, Walter got a hair cut after documenting the wild-ness).

 

All in all, I'm a lucky girl.  I wish I could say that when I fell for this man more than a decade ago, I knew what a great father he would be... but that would be untrue.  Ultimately, I knew he was an amazing man and my best friend, but that didn't mean he'd be there for the tough parts of parenting (which I knew nothing of at the time).  And he is not only there for the tough parts, but he's there with patience that constantly amazes me. For that, I'm so very grateful. Thanks, Superdad.  You are truly the best.