I Always Wanted To Be A Father

Aodhan,

I think I always wanted to be a father.  Part of it might have been the fact that I was the only guy in a house full of women when I was growing up.  I guess one of the cool things about us doing "father-son" stuff is that we will both be experiencing it for the 1st time.

I'm really looking forward to passing on my love of the outdoors and stuff like camping and survival skills to you.  The fact that I grew up without a father doesn't necessarily mean that I feel like I was cheated or shortchanged in some way.  As I'm sure you will have figured out by the time you read this, your grandma is a pretty awesome lady.  In fact, she's the one who taught me the same love for the outdoors I want to teach to you.  If I missed anything due to the lack of a father figure, it was more than made up for by the awesomeness of your grandma.  You might be taller than her before you reach Junior High, but never doubt for a second that she can still whip your hindparts if you need it.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I'm your father a little over two months after your birth, but it gets a little clearer every day i come home from work and you look up at me and smile.  I know that when you get to high school, we will probably want to kill each other at some point(genetics is a wonderful thing), but I'll do my best to remember that I was a major pain in the ass when I was that age(just ask your grandma).

I love you,

Dad