Parenthood

I started writing this the day before Griffin turned one and finally found time to finish this post.  I am finding myself reflecting back on the last couple years and I really can't help but smile at all of our experiences with being pregnant and now having an almost one year old.  Actually, it's a HUGE smile!  Being a parent is by far the best thing that has ever happened to Sean and I, and we only have a year under our belt!  It has taught us patience, compassion and has humbled us in so many ways.  We do laugh at the patience thing because we always say that all of our patience is used up on Griffin, so no one else really gets to benefit from that one!  Our compassion and humility has just been amplified, I joke with Sean that he is a "softy" now, although I wouldn't have it any other way.  Being a parent changes you in so many ways and I remember pondering with a coworker before I was pregnant how exactly you deal with the change.  I mean, Sean and I are active people who love to go do things, eat new foods, be spontaneous..etc. etc.  I felt like we were too selfish in many ways to have a child, although we knew we wanted kids for a long time.  My coworker said that your child just becomes the center of your life and you really don't care about doing everything you used to do.  I wasn't so sure about that, but I can say that it was mostly true.  I think we have found a good balance of doing our favorite things but including Griffin in ways that is fun for him and us.  Introducing him to our love of the outdoors, food, our doggies has been such an amazing experience.  He has introduced us to many things as well like sleep deprivation and how to poop in the tub.  Just kidding :). It's been a true joy to watch him grow into the sweet little toddler he is today and as I feel sad that my son is no longer a baby, I look forward to new things to come like talking, belly laughs and chasing him around the house.  Happy parenthood to us :)!