Every Rose Has Its Thorns

Usually when we put Ava to bed for the night she doesn't put up much of a fuss and quietly goes to sleep within five minutes or so. Yesterday, however, she was determined to not go gently into the night. As soon as I had laid her in her crib, she exploded in a fury of shrieks, baby-language explitives, and tears. Thinking that she would fall asleep fairly quickly like she normally does, I left her room and shut the door for a few minutes. I soon was reminded that she is a persistent little girl.

We decided to try rocking her to calm her down and hopefully put her to sleep. Typically Doni would be the rocker (as opposed to the "rockee"), but she had several things to do so I stepped up. As Ava began calming down, I cradled her in my arms and slowly rocked back and forth. With her being wide awake from her tantrum, I knew I was going to be there for a while.

She is a very observant baby. Normally, I can't get her to look at me for more than 3-4 seconds unless I smile outrageously wide like a clown or talk high-pitched like a eunuch. She is too busy checking out her surroundings to give me the time of day. For some reason this time was different. After scanning her room thoroughly to make sure that the dogs hadn't taken any of her toys, she looked me in the face. I wasn't sure what to do because this was absolutely unprovoked! I wasn't acting obnoxious in any way, yet I had her undivided attention. We had a heart-to-heart conversation as she continued taking in every word I said. She didn't take her eyes off of me for what must have been ten minutes. What was said will stay between her and I, but I will say that this was one of my favorite experiences as a father.