It’s the baby’s birthday, and he’s crying. He’s often crying, though rarely for very long. He’s a happy child, full of smiles and laughter and silliness, with more personality than I’d expect from someone who can’t speak and barely walks. It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since he was born.
It doesn’t feel like a year. It feels like… well, like it’s always been this way. I vaguely remember a time when he’d stay put when I put him down, and a time when he was asleep more than he was awake, but the time before he was here is all shadows and smoke.
Spending all day with a baby is humbling. He has problems I can’t fix (“Why are you crying?”), issues I can’t understand (“Why are you crying now?”). Biological needs that, regardless of my schedule, need to be met. Diapers. Bottles. Burping. He’s gross, needy, and unbearably cute; I’m stripped of all dignity in his presence.
There are sacrifices involved in working from home with a baby. Contracts and projects that take me out of the house during the day (or over multiple days) are a challenge. Long-term on-site contracts are out of the question. And there are days when my productivity is a joke, and I find myself scrambling before dawn the following day to make up for time lost to caring for a clingy, screaming infant who refuses to nap even though he’s so very, very tired.
But he’s bold, curious, and fun to have around. He’s never really been sick. No ear infections, no colic, no signs that the trauma of his first few days outside the womb has had any lasting effect on him. And like I said, he’s happy far more than he’s not. Healthy and happy. I can’t ask for more, and I’m infinitely grateful for what I have.
Happy birthday, little man. I’m looking forward to see what the next year brings us.
Awesome. My two kids are the best products I’ve shipped, by far. Although truth be told, I was a classic manager in the process – my wife did the actual hard work 😉