even though sometimes it's hard having him gone for 24 hours at a time, the silver lining of his schedule is that he is also home for 24 hours at a time. sometimes 48 hours, sometimes 96. really, once we settled into the rhythm of the fire department shift schedule, it became clear that it is mostly wonderful. the trickiest part is probably getting home from work with her right around dinner time on the days he is gone and I've got no dinner plans. though in times like those there are always options like popcorn and kale chips, bean/cheese/veggie nachos, cereal..... and is that really a hardship? nah.
probably my favorite part is how much time it gives the two of them together. good, long chunks of time. time in which to do things like go climb up onto the roof, stack firewood, and go for a nice long swing under the big white oaks.
all done under the caring and very watchful eye of her main man.
My dad was a fireman ... those working nights were the nights we got to eat pizza ... and breakfast for dinner. It wasn't until one of our really long talks right before my mom passed that she told me the reason we had those things ... I always thought it was because they were easy and she considered those her nights off ... she admitted it was because he hated them ... SHOCK! Who on earth could hate breakfast for dinner? My dad. Wow.
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures ... great post ... and what a great relationship ... a true gift.
You know, now that I'm thinking of it we do also eat the things he isn't so fond of sometimes when he's working. mostly though, for us, it's just the convenience of cereal or nachos or mac and cheese and roasted veggies or whatever it is.
Deletethank you~ I do indeed see their relationship and time together as a very wonderful gift.
I love seeing dad's with their children!
ReplyDeleteme too!
DeleteSuch a beautiful amount of time they get together. My hubby works from home, and we carve out time every day, in the later afternoon, as daddy and Reece time. I think it is important time for both of them.
ReplyDeletemost definitely it is, Kim~
DeleteI love this. I can only imagine what it's like to be a little girl and to know the deep, protective, unconditional, love of a father. Our girls are so fortunate that this will always be their first relationship with a man. Pretty awesome!!
ReplyDeleteyes they are!
DeleteI so enjoy watching them together, it fills me with such gratitude and love.
Such a wonderful relationship a daughter and her father, a precious thing.
ReplyDeletelike you, I was lucky to have a husband who had ample time to spend with the kids. I love the photos you shot while they were together! She is a daredevil in that swing!!
ReplyDeleteshe is at times very cautious, but it seems she'll try anything and especially if he assures her she is safe then she is all in.
DeleteLove it! These are all things that my husband will probably be doing with our daughter. She was "helping" him stack wood last weekend and watching him put on his climbing harness to cut some branches out of the tree. Dad's and daughters have fun that Moms roll their eyes at, but smile at too! (jumping off the roof of the car, etc)
ReplyDeleteI have definitely rolled my eyes (while smiling and laughing, usually) at many of their shenanigans!
DeleteThat is my idea of a perfect childhood - one where daddy becomes a little girl's best friend. Beautiful!
ReplyDeletethey are quite a pair, those two!
Deleteit is always so beautiful to see a truly deep connection between a father and a daughter :) and look at her... so brave!! my girls are like that, and they do not get it from me :) btw... also very jealous of your huge neatly stacked woodpile... we have so far too go there!!
ReplyDeleteshe is certainly brave. and I think being around him really boosts her confidence and helps foster her willingness to try anything.
Deletestill stacking wood and refilling that woodshed here, too. but I'll let you in on something- it's just the outer edges that are so neatly stacked. last year Mike started doing it that way- neatly edging it and then just tossing the rest in. it works well and it seems we fit about the same amount of wood in there but it takes way less time to stack. (or, "not stack")