Daddy Tree: Tiny Footsteps

One of the things Cherish and I worry about with my staying home with Willow is that she will miss out on socialization and play with other kids. And this is a tough nut for me to crack because I am a shy guy (and many moms seem downright afraid of me). But I've been working hard at it, enrolling Willow in a play and learn class (which, it seems, might be more for my benefit than hers because I have to, YIKES, interact with moms) and taking Willow to playgrounds, parks and bigger attractions such as the zoo. I searched in vain for a play group for Willow (I found one dads group in Nashville, but all the kids in the group seemed to be years older than Miss Willow). I think I've succeeded, and I think I will get better at getting Willow out into the world (this summer is going to be grand and my little girl is going to start pulling her shy daddy into those awkward situations), but there have been flubs along the way. One of them, I'm sorry to report, is lap-sit story tim...

Please forgive my haste and sloppy writing. As Willow becomes more active, I have an ever-tightening window for writing on this blog. I'll keep plugging away, though. ### Miss Willow has had an extraordinary few days, and they're going to continue. On Friday, she and I headed to our first Gymboree class, and we had a blast! I'd been nervous about going because I tend to shrink from strangers, and I was intimidated about being the only man in a group of cheerful and chatty women. I was wrong. Willow and I had so much fun that we can't wait to get back on Friday. Aside from Willow and me, there were seven mommies and their babies ranging from 6 months to 9 months old. Both Willow and I were shy at first, but we got over that pretty quickly. A mom about my age helped me out of my shell, and Willow, well, I think her curiosity overcame her timidness. Before long she was off and crawling, exploring everything (she was not one for staying in Daddy's lap during th...