I remember his first three months. I always thought that non-stop sleepless nights would be one of the biggest challenges of parenthood. And it was a little rough, but it was also really sweet. Those 3:00 AM moments of holding him until sleep took back over were special.
And then it was over. He started sleeping through the night. And he grew to a point where we have different challenges now, and different moments of sweetness.
Before Rhys was born, I asked a friend with college-aged kids what his favorite stage was. He said he couldn’t answer, they were all great. For whatever reason, overly-diplomatic answers tend to bug me, but that one makes sense, especially now.
One of the most helpful things for me to remember about fatherhood, and probably life in general, is that you go through all these stages. Each one brings things that are really, really hard, and things you absolutely love. But the thing to remember is that none of them lasts too long.
The challenges of each particular season come to an end. That can be a comforting reminder during those really long and difficult days.
But you don’t want to rush the ending. There are also a lot of sweet moments that you’ll only have access to for that season.
