Last Day

Well, this is it! The last blog post! What to write about? I’ve experienced so much in the last 122 days its hard to know where to begin.

I am anxious and excited to return to work (feelings that are heightened because I have a new job), yet nostalgic and subdued that my time with Margot is coming to an end. I am happy that I did so much with her over the last four months. However, I am also annoyed that much of the month of February and parts of March were a wash because I had a long cold (I only blogged about the worst part of it). I wish I could have some of that time back with her so I could enjoy it more. In sum, my emotions right now are a bit mixed up!

One thing I don’t regret is writing Tough Cookies. Although it was hard to come up with 122 original baby-related thoughts day after day, I enjoyed it for the most part. Moreover, having a blog encouraged me to go out and try new things so that, at the very least, I would have something to write about at the end of the day! I would definitely recommend blogging as an emotional release valve for any future parent.

As much fun as it was, I’m going to take a long hiatus from writing. I’m not sure whether another chapter of Tough Cookies is in me at this point but I’m not foreclosing the opportunity of starting something again a few years from now when the dust has settled and perhaps a new opportunity has come up. We shall see…!

Before I go though, I’d like to thank Jen’s blogger friends for inspiring me with their blog website sites. I’d also like to say thank you to anyone who was the subject of a blog post (my friends and family) - I literally carried a camera around with me all the time and was constantly saying “this could make a good blog post” to them! So thank you for putting up with me. Most of all I’d like to thank Jen for being my sounding board, editor and occasional muse. I couldn’t have done this without her.

You know, I named this blog “Tough Cookies” because I thought it would be challenging (tough) and fun (cookies) at the same time. It was – but not in the ways I expected. Looking back, I didn’t find changing diapers, cleaning bottles or keeping Margot distracted to be that hard in the end - those things just became part of my daily routine. What I found to be the most challenging was the sheer amount of time I was given to reflect upon the direction my life now that Margot is such a big part of it. I think I came up with some good ideas but it’s going to be constant work to make sure I am the father that I would like to be. At the same time, Margot wasn’t just fun because of her amazing smile, laugh or goofy haircut (whoops, my fault). I think she was most fun because of her inherent ability to find ways to surprise me. I am really happy to know her and I can’t wait to see what she has in store for me next. “Sweets – don’t eat that!!”

The End