She Said “Da-Da” first and I’m Not Salty at All
I knew it was coming. The way she clings to him. She looks at him with such intensity as if she knows he’ll always be there for her. He’ll always protect her. She stares at him like he’s the greatest man and only man who will truly have her by the whole heart.
I knew it was coming. The sound of vulnerability in her cries as she reaches out to him for comfort. How she places her tiny hand on his chest as to say, “you belong to me.” It’s something about the way she lays her head sweetly on his shoulders like she knows that everything will be alright. Even when he lifts her into his arms as she looks back at you there’s a sense of confidence and pride, like “This my Daddy!”
I knew it was coming. I’ve heard it for the past 10 months that the words would soon utter from her tiny lips. No matter how hard I practiced with her to say Mama, she couldn’t help but shout out her hero first.
He wanted me to be jealous, but honestly it made my heart smile. To hear her say with certainty as she gazed at him as she always does, “Da-Da,” it was a moment I’ll never forget. His face, wow. His face was full of joy to hear his sweet baby girl call out to him. In that instant as I watched him and her, I couldn’t have been happier.
Right then I thanked God for her Daddy being the man he is. For all the sacrifices that he’s made to be a part of her life… to never miss a single day while she was in NICU, or opportunity to comfort her, or even hold her hands together to pray before she sleeps at night.
Being a “Daddy’s Girl,” I understand the bond between a father and a daughter. I’ll fight you over mine.
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But seriously, I’m not mad. I’m not salty one bit, because I am grateful, that her saying “Da-Da” isn’t just her first word. It’s a declaration that her Daddy is her protector, provider, best friend, and comforter. There’s no way I could feel jealous about that.
I knew it was coming. From Day one, he told he that she was his baby and that he loves her with everything in him. The way he described her perfect being the day she was born. How he watches her every move. It’s the thousands of questions he would ask the doctors and nurses. The way he looks at her like he knows God gave him… us an angel. It’s a bond that will never break.
You know there are so many who do not have their father’s in their lives. I’m just thankful that even though we’re not married, he not only does what he is obligated to do, he does was he should do and that love, protect, provide and care for our baby girl.
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So you see, his plan backfired. He wanted me to be jealous to feel “salty,” but nope. I’m grateful for him being the Father she needs for this thing called life. There’s nothing like the feeling of knowing that your Daddy is and will always be there for you. That love can never be matched.
Blessings
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MAMALOGUE is LSherie’s true stories of mommy life with a preemie.
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