Great Moments in Fatherhood
Mike has been having a bit of a tough time with the pregnancy. Specifically, he doesn't really know what to do. He helps me when I'm sick and he does the work around the house that I can't, and he's been working hard on clearing out the room that will be Philo's bedroom. He's also been reading books on parenting and fathering. However, he's a little lost on how to relate to a child who hasn't even been born yet. I try to nudge him in the right direction.
Today I walked into the bedroom where Mike was laying on the bed, reading a book called The Baseball Economist. I flopped onto the bed next to him.
"Do you want me to read The Baseball Economist to Philo?" he asked.
"Actually," I said, "some studies show that if you read the same book to a baby in utero every night, the baby will remember the book after they're born," I said. "The cadence of the language will sound familiar, and it'll be soothing."
Mike looked skeptical, and then scooted over to my belly and started reading from his book. "As the Braves emerged from cellar-dwellers in the 1980s to perennial division champs in the early 1990s, Mazzone began to gain some notoriety for the consistently good pitching staffs he put together year after year. Clearly, the Braves' winning ways in the 1990s and 2000s had a lot to do with pitching. Table 8 lists the ERA-"
Mike stopped reading at this point and explained to Philo, "ERA stands for earned run average," he said. "It's really a bogus stat because it has a lot to do with your defense. It isn't all the pitcher."
He resumed reading. "-for each team in Major League Baseball since 1991, Mazzone's first full year as the Braves' pitching coach."
"Here, I'll let you see the chart," he said, taking the book and pressing the pages against my belly.
"Yeah, yeah," I said, rolling my eyes and heaving myself off the bed.
I later asked Mike if he minded if I blogged that little episode. "I wasn't sure if it was a tender, intimate moment between father and son," I said, keeping a straight face. "I wouldn't want to expose a personal moment without your permission."
Brings a tear to the eye, doesn't it?
Today I walked into the bedroom where Mike was laying on the bed, reading a book called The Baseball Economist. I flopped onto the bed next to him.
"Do you want me to read The Baseball Economist to Philo?" he asked.
"Actually," I said, "some studies show that if you read the same book to a baby in utero every night, the baby will remember the book after they're born," I said. "The cadence of the language will sound familiar, and it'll be soothing."
Mike looked skeptical, and then scooted over to my belly and started reading from his book. "As the Braves emerged from cellar-dwellers in the 1980s to perennial division champs in the early 1990s, Mazzone began to gain some notoriety for the consistently good pitching staffs he put together year after year. Clearly, the Braves' winning ways in the 1990s and 2000s had a lot to do with pitching. Table 8 lists the ERA-"
Mike stopped reading at this point and explained to Philo, "ERA stands for earned run average," he said. "It's really a bogus stat because it has a lot to do with your defense. It isn't all the pitcher."
He resumed reading. "-for each team in Major League Baseball since 1991, Mazzone's first full year as the Braves' pitching coach."
"Here, I'll let you see the chart," he said, taking the book and pressing the pages against my belly.
"Yeah, yeah," I said, rolling my eyes and heaving myself off the bed.
I later asked Mike if he minded if I blogged that little episode. "I wasn't sure if it was a tender, intimate moment between father and son," I said, keeping a straight face. "I wouldn't want to expose a personal moment without your permission."
Brings a tear to the eye, doesn't it?
posted by Danulai at
4:15 PM
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6 Comments:
How very... um, touching.
May I suggest-- Be Prepared: A Practical Handbook for New Dads
http://www.amazon.com/Be-Prepared-Practical-Handbook-Dads/dp/0743251547/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1202684493&sr=8-1
It was a big hit in our house. I think Mike would love it.
By
Creamy Silver, At
5:05 PM
i read your entry out loud to bran and he grinned through the whole thing. :) maybe something a little more child oriented, like green eggs and ham would be in the offing? then again, if philo knows about baseball early in life, he'll be able to have that particular bonding thing...or else he'll become a statistician.
By
dykewife, At
7:45 PM
I say whatever he wants to read -- it's voice recognition/speech patterns that Philo will remember.
Still, nothing wrong with a little baseball!
By
GF, At
9:11 PM
I predict that the instant Mike holds Philo he will understand how to be a dad; just love him forever.
By
country girl, At
9:14 PM
The part where he 'showed' Philo the chart was too funny. ;-)
By
kite, At
2:49 PM
I agree Be Prepared is a great read for any expecting dad, clueless or not. Funny. And very helpful.
We grew skeptical of reading to the in-the-womb baby. Seems newborns are soothed by steady, loud noises, like vacuum cleaners, because that's a good approximation for what it sounded like in womb--all of mommy's organs busily and noisily at work all around.
So, maybe the rhythm of mommy reading somehow rises above the inner din. But short of a real shout by dad, I wonder if anything breaks through.
By
Stefan, At
10:31 PM
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