Guest Post: Hilary

It's time for another guest post, this time from the beautiful and talented Hilary
from BabyMooHoo!  I just love this super sweet mama, her posts always bring a smile to
my face.  She is so sincere and opens her heart to her readers so genuinely, allowing me
to relate to her in so many ways.  She is the mama to the most precious little girl, Natalie,
and I can't imagine how she gets anything done with all that cuteness.  Visit her lovely
blog soon, you will love reading about this family's adventures!

 Hi!  It’s Hilary from BabyMooHoo.  I’m just pleased as punch to be sharing a little guest
post for fellow readers of Liv’s blog while she’s off on a weekend getaway with her
sweet family.  Aren’t her two girls just the cutest?  I have to hold back from trying to
pinch their cheeks through my computer screen whenever one of her posts pops up
in my Reader.

I’m a mama to my own cheeky wonder, a sweet 14-month old named Natalie Iris.  My
bundle of personality will be joining me in showing some love for the men in her life
this Father’s Day weekend, which we’ll be celebrating with a family hike and some grilling
on our back deck—keeping it simple and fun, just as her Daddy has requested.  How will
you lovely readers be recognizing the fathers in your lives?  It’s not easy to adequately
show all the love and appreciation you feel for these men, is it?

With all my Father’s Day planning on the brain lately, I’ve been thinking a lot
about fatherhood in general.  What a truly awesome experience it is to watch someone
take on that role in the life of a child.  My husband and I have been together (whether
dating, engaged, or married) for ten years now, and if I thought I loved him through
our journey as a two-person unit, oh, boy, was I unprepared for the love that would
overflow in my heart when I saw him hold our baby girl for the first time.  It wasn’t just
the rush of adrenaline and post-labor exhaustion and weepy new-mama hormones
making me feel so overcome, either.  I swear I feel that heart-aching-tear-welling slam to
my gut every day when I watch my Mikey-Moo parenting our daughter.  He is still the
same person I fell hard for all those years ago, to be sure, but he has also become
something new since welcoming our budgie into the world.  He has always been patient
and kind and protective and silly and responsible.  Now he is not only tender
and understanding, but he’s no pushover when it comes to food-throwing and hair-pulling
and eye-poking.  He is the only person I can imagine holding on to as I navigate this
new chapter of our lives.

How do you express all that to the man you love with a Hallmark card and a necktie?
I guess you can’t.  I guess Father’s Day is just a reminder to reflect on the magnitude
of parenting, a reminder to say thank-you. 

So:  Thank-you to all the fathers, partners, boyfriends, grandfathers, uncles,
brothers, godfathers, friends, and more who touch the lives of children in positive
ways.  Thank-you for understanding that mothers can’t always do it alone.  Thank-you
for late-night diaper-changes and taking turns waking up early with little ones.  For
sharing household responsibilities and financial burdens.  For playing peekaboo and
singing “Baby Beluga.”  For saying “No” when it’s important and breaking the rules when
it’s not.  You guys?  Are the best.  You deserve this day and more.
Happy Father’s Day!