Do the stars shine brighter tonight?

This was my thought as I unpacked the car tonight. It may have been the cold weather and clear skies though, it's hard to be sure. I'm currently pottering around the house tidying up and preparing to welcome Ursula to the home tomorrow. I suspect my perspective may have altered in the last few days.

Lets start with the birth. As it approached it felt much like a late night after party when everything was getting a bit hazy. You know the sort, you're sure someone said something profound but it's been a very long night.

For a variety of totally mundane reasons it had taken us 28 hours to reach the dénouement of this particular hospital visit. I'll spare the tedious details although I'll happily give you the story as I remember it over a beer if you ask me in person. 28 hours is a long time to be awake and the sensation of transforming from the theoretical future parent to an actual real one is much akin to being launched off on a roller-coaster of unknown length and duration. I have now joined that biggest of shared clubs - hello my fellow breeders, I can talk about my child now ;-)

Picture of a newborn baby looking hungry

When I was ordered to bed the first night I excitedly blurted the news across the social media. I was worried I would bore my followers with parental ramblings before being reminded there are a lot of parents out there happy to share their experiences. I'll be paying closer attention to what they say in the future on my journey to responsible adulthood.

I've ticked off a few things on my journey so far.

I'm sure I am quickly acquiring the list of stereotypical parental behaviours. I get the sense it's going to be a wild ride catching them all!