At first I considered posting this under Daddy, but knowing that personal posts are usually posted under daylogs, I decided to post it here. As such, then, this is my first daylog, and may quite possibly remain my only one for the foreseeable future.
My son, Callum, was born on 19th October, 2004. DemBones commented in the catbox that "Your firstborn was promised to me, Berek" - this always made me grin. I didn't daylog this event, or my earlier marriage to Elke, who originally came from Stuttgart, Germany - daylogs never really seemed to be my forte in e2 - I prefer short, factual nodes, and often spend a while researching them. Although I have not noded very often recently, I have always appreciated this place's sense of community and support, so I thought I'd bare my soul to you today.
The relationship between Elke and I cooled markedly following Callum's birth - he'd been born by Caesarian, breastfeeding was difficult, and we both found rearing a new baby tough going. Anyway, things started going downhill, and we separated last September. That was an emotional weekend for everyone, especially Callum.
Since then, we've been keen to make sure I have plenty of contact with Callum, and I've had him every weekend, and sometimes longer at holidays. I get a lot of support from my Mum and Dad, and we try and do lots of fun things with him. He's actually blossomed under the new regime, once he got used to the routine, I think partly because the atmosphere between Elke and I isn't so tense, and of course we're not together in the same house with him, anyway. We get lots more smiles from him these days, and he's generally a happier child. Of course, he's getting older too, and benefitting from his nursery classes. He loves swimming, softplay, throwing stones in the water at Arran, playing with his toys, trains, oh, and Daddy, most of all. His face lights up when he sees me come to pick him up from Elke, and he really enjoys his weekends with me and his grandparents. We try to let him mix with my nieces and my cousin's kids whenever we can, to help him grow socially.
It's been tiring for me, working full-time and commuting through the week, then devoting most of my weekend to him, but it's lovely to see him grow up, and the love and affection he shows me and my parents. Anyway, that's all for now, I may update you all on how things are going periodically.
PS: It's a happy coincidence that this is softlinked to The Cat in the Hat by William Shakespeare - The Cat In The Hat is one of Callum's favourite books - he knows it by heart!