I can't wait to keep meeting my daughter

Clara has a new trait.

She smiles.

I know, not really earth shattering, but for Karey and me it is huge. She used to smile on occasion before, but was always assumed it was just by accident. We'd see her sort of curl up her lip and her eyes widen and we'd claim that as an expression of her happiness. We don't need to do that anymore. Now she smiles all the time and in different ways. Huge, big open mouth smiles. Little, almost mischievous closed mouth smiles. And of course my favorite, the one you see here, smiles that are sent only through her eyes.

This new phenomenon got me thinking. There is so much about Clara that we have yet to learn. I passionately looked forward to meeting my first child for a long time, but I never thought that once she came to us, that introduction process would be ongoing for the rest of our lives. 3 months ago, I knew nothing about Clara, but 2 weeks ago, I knew nothing about the Clara that smiles all of the time.

The weather has been spectacular this week in Central Virginia and whenever I feel the spring air, I almost automatically start thinking about baseball. Living in Upstate NY, the idea of getting to play baseball outside after being buried under snow for 6 months brought me such excitement. I loved when my Dad and I would find my glove buried under a pile of sporting equipment in the basement and we'd oil it up to get ready to play catch for the first time.

It won't be long before I can share that experience with Clara. I have no idea if she will have the same enjoyment that I did. As I thought about that future, my mind started racing, wondering what kind of kid Clara will be. Will she be a super girly-girl, like her mother and her Aunt Becky and I will have to beg her to come outside? Will she be a little tomboy, like Aunt Amy and be the one begging me to go outside and play catch?

But my thought process went even further.. What if she does want to play softball or baseball, what kind of player will she be? Will she want to lead-off and steal bases? Will she be a power hitter? Will she want to pitch and learn a vicious windmill that her opponents will cower in fear over? (I vote for all of the above)

The point is, I have no idea. I don't even know that girl yet. But I can't wait to meet her.

I honestly get excited when I think of every single one of those possibilities unfolding, and this is just one tiny example of the thousands of new Claras we are going to meet in the future.

Over the course of my life, I don't feel really like I have changed all that much. But this new revelation has made me realize that my parents are meeting new versions of me all the time. Even though I am a full grown adult, they are still meeting the new me, even today.

They have waited a long time to meet their son as a father.