true joys of (parent) life

I was witness to another stunning development a few nights back while putting Baxter to bed. The general routine for bed involves a few literary favorites (Big Tractor, Papa Get the Moon, etc..) a little gentle rocking accompanied by the Carly Simon classic "You're The Love of My Life", which in our family is titled, "The Avocado Song". Bax really loves this song, as his mom has been singing it to him since the early days. In fact, his 1st 4 word sentence was, "Daddy sing avocado song?" Mostly, he wants Mom to sing it but I've been practicing up so that I can pinch hit when Jennie is tired or at the hospital.
Anyway, I was well into the 2nd chorus when Baxter slid off my lap and toddled to his crib. I kept up the singing and rubbed his back for a few seconds when he sat up and put his hand over my mouth. Stunned, I looked at him for a second to see this little pensive face struggling with deep thought. Obviously, he had something to say and he was searching his limited but rapidly developing database of vocabulary for the right thing to see. I like to think he was trying to protect my fragile psyche and was struggling for the gentlest choice of words. So, after a few seconds, he decided what to do. He gave me his little wave, which in reality looks like he's turning a door knob and said cheerfully, "Bye!"
"Oh?! Uh, goodnight Bax. I love you."
He replied, "Goodnight. I wuh you." and plopped down on his bear and blanket pile.
I wasn't upset at all. Quite the opposite, it gave me a nice warm feeling and I chuckled to myself on the way out of his room. These are the moments that make parenting priceless, in my opinion. Not only was he polite, but he realized he was tired and wanted some peace and quiet so he could go to sleep.
Paige has been pretty spectacular too. She has fallen asleep a few times without the straight jacket treatment, which allows us to stare at her little feet (one of my favorite pastimes). She's becoming a champion nurser and her scrawny legs are starting to get puffy (ie: fat). Baxter seems to like her more, even if he still clobbers her with his affection.
I've reached the 2 month mark as a stay at home dad and while many days are tiring and challenging, I don't for one moment regret my choice. I look forward to the many more opportunities that Baxter and Paige will give me to rejoice in their wonderment.