My Dad has never been one to be interested in babies. I don’t know how he acted when my brother and I were little, but I never remember him purposely holding a baby.
I was the exact same way. Ace was the first baby that I had ever held that was younger than 6-7 months. Babies always scared me for some reason. My wife always asked why I would never hold them. If I broke a baby that belonged to me I would feel horrible. If I broke someone elses baby I don’t think I could live with myself. So I just avoided it altogether.
My Dad has always had a liking for Ace. Ace is his first and only grandchild, and it is as new and exciting for him as it is for me! However, Ace hasn’t always had a liking for his Grandpa… 🙁
My Dad lives about an hour and a half away from where I live. He was born and raised in the country and not is a big fan of coming to the city. So, Momma and I usually take one weekend a month and drive down to see my parents. We’ll visit my Mom on Saturday and then my Dad on Sunday. So Ace only gets to see his Grandma and Grandpa about once a month.
My Mom is a natural with kids so she has no problem, but my Dad has is the exact opposite.
When I was born, back in what feels like the stone ages, my Dad got extremely sick. He was in the hospital for a few weeks after almost dying from pneumonia.
When he was release from the hospital I was probably a month or so old and had only seen my Dad a handful of times. He came home and picked me up and I did nothing but scream!
Every time he has picked up Ace the same thing happens. Ace immediately goes from happy boy, to scared shitless boy, to get-me-the-hell-away-from-this-guy boy! I think it brings back memories for my Dad of when I was little.
I always feel bad for my Dad when this happens. I know he feels like crap and he wants nothing more to hold him and play with him a little bit.
We went to my Dad’s house this past weekend, and Ace did the exact same thing as soon as we got there. My Dad’s heart hit the floor once again. However, after about a half an hour Ace started to warm up to him. My Dad picked him up and started walking out to the barn to show him the pigs.
My Dad was so proud walking with Ace in his arm! I haven’t seen him smile like that in a long time! He held Ace and walked around the yard for probably an hour and a half, and there was no way that anyone else was going to interfere with their fun!
I think this was the day that Grandpa has been waiting for the past seven months! I’m sure Ace will grow up and have a lot of good times with his Grandpa. Grandpa is a fun guy, but he can be a little scary when you first meet him… 🙂
