How life has changed

"Oh my, looks like a storm's coming..."

This simple meteorological phrase, previously referring to a mass of cumulonimbus clouds, towering 37,000 feet in the sky, about to unleash a torrent of rain, hail, and lightning.... now has a whole new meaning.

When I hear those words now, my first thought is, "Oh no, he must REALLY be filling that diaper." My mind immediately assumes that instead of a fluffy bunch of clouds, there is instead a mass of yellow curdled cheese making its way to my son's lower backside, about to make my evening very exciting.

And no longer do my dinner conversations consist of, "So honey, tell me ALL about your day...", while we gaze dreamily at each other over candlelight... rather, they now consist of breastfeeding schedules, tactics, and performance, the consistency of my son's #2's, how he's healing after his circumcision, breastfeeding, falling face first into our bowl of chicken noodle soup from exhaustion, waking up and talking about breastfeeding again... then repeating the entire process because we're so tired we no longer remember what we covered.

"HONEY, I'VE SPRUNG A LEAK!!"
This now refers to my need to jump up from whatever I'm doing, grab the nearest burpee cloth, washcloth, sock, or favorite t-shirt, and rush to my wife's aid. Not to fix a leaking faucet, a hole in a bucket, or a catastrophic hot water heater failure... but rather to mop up the 37 and a half gallons of milk that's now spread between us and Eastern Texas.

What has also changed is that there's a small life in the other room. It means that a small (hopefully) part of me was mixed with my wife and out came this little poo factory. It means that God, from before this world began, already had a plan for this little life. It means that I have an awesome responsibility to lead my family before the Lord... daily. It means that my house, vehicles, clothes, food, books, and favorite mementos are no longer mine. It means that I look forward to seeing TWO people when I get home from work. And it means that I have become the proudest dad and husband on the planet, and hopefully the most thankful.