raising bowmans

living intentionally + making memories every day.

FAMILY, GBB, marriage, MOTHERHOOD

Adventures with Daddy

February 1, 2017

Ohhhh you guys, I am thrilled to have my darling Hubs be my very first guest writer on HBXO + share a short list of things he learned while going on adventures with GBB solo while we were in LA. My heart has been melted, my cheeks hurt from smiling, and my belly aches from giggling. Enjoy this sweet + real post from my baby daddy. The one. The only. Hubs.

daddy GBB LA 1

Leading off, I would like to say there is nothing quite like being a parent. It’s a very magical, beautiful thing that is full of surprises. It makes you want to enjoy the small things, or at least when you do enjoy them, you feel better. Secondly, I would like to say YES MOMS!

I had the honour of living like a full time parent for a couple days. Man oh man, I’m a mason–I build stone walls. That was harder work than any of it. It’s rewarding and amazing, but it’s hard; so to any of you doing it–well fucking done. Hol said not to swear, but it was the best adjective I could come up with.

I’ve comprised a short list of things I learned adventuring solo with my dude around the City of Angels.
1. PAY ATTENTION! Do not get lost in random signs about historical landmarks. The little dude doesn’t care about those. He cares about the giant sloppy mud puddle that he bathes in from head to toe. There’s a part b to this point: PACK EXTRA CLOTHES.
2. Snacks change. Just because a snack was a hit last time you did groceries, don’t stock pile thinking you’ve hit the jack pot in the snack game (aka Trader Joe’s dehydrated fruit “odds n ends”). We got three extra packs. To elaborate, this was my biggest battle: keeping him well fed with healthy stuff that he will actually consume. 50% of everything I graciously handed him from the driver’s seat ended on the floor. I was sure the rental company was going to charge extra for the mess. I mean, I cleaned it but the goldfish regained life and swam upstream into the depths of the seats and the carpet and the trunk and the side pockets and the seatbelt holes and that damned nook between the seat and the door.
3. Eating sand is a part of growing up. It needs to happen, they need to experience this wonderful sensation of having a mouth full of sand. I say this because there’s no stopping it. I tried. Then I let it happen. And then it stopped happening, he figured it out: sand in mouth is no bueno.
4. Skip a nap and welcome to daddy hell. George is a very, very chill individual. He adapts, he copes, he’s thoughtful and very aware and very loving. Skip a nap and you’re liable to get a baby knuckle sandwich. Inaccurately read the indicator of whether it’s nap time or not and you’ve got the battle royale with cheese. You need to find the sweet spot. Having a sweet cuddly snoozing George in my arms is one of my greatest joys. It makes me feel like I’ve done a good job. My wife being a close second, he’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

5. Possibly the most important thing that I learned, go with the flow. Take the experiences as they come: fun or not. Laugh like a maniac and tell outlandish stories about nothing. Be a monster and a horse and a race car and a truck and do it all over again. Let yourself be free in the craziness. Let people look. Squawk with him in the produce aisle. Let him feed you the uncleaned strawberries. Be honest with him always, even when you know for certain he’s not going to be happy about how much longer it’s gonna take or what’s gonna happen next. Always be there for him and love the shit out of all of him.

gbb LA
I just realized this list could go on forever. And I also realized how different it would be for everyone. There’s no correct list, everyone does it different. I love that about people. But there’s my top five.
Thanks for giving it a read. This blogging thing is kinda fun actually.
LOVE AND PEACE,
HUBS.

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Comments

  2. Aaron, this post ROCKS! I love the Daddy perspective. GBB is one lucky little dude to have the parents he has…we by extension are lucky to be included in this wonderful journey of parenthood that you two have so enthusiastically embraced.

    Cathy xo

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