SPORTS

In-person with Wesley and smitten

By ALEX SPONSELLER
Posted 6/21/22

I’ve always wanted to be a father and was certainly ready to join the ranks of the other dads of the world. As the months passed, my excitement continued to grow.

Still, I never really …

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SPORTS

In-person with Wesley and smitten

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I’ve always wanted to be a father and was certainly ready to join the ranks of the other dads of the world. As the months passed, my excitement continued to grow.

Still, I never really understood what I was in for until something happened … I looked into his eyes.

I fell in love in that moment harder than I knew was even possible. This little boy that was dwelling by my side for the past nine months was finally here. I no longer had to speak to a round belly, I no longer had to decipher a language made of kicks and rumbles. He was here, and it felt like my life had truly just begun.

As I write this a week later, I can finally understand why so many fathers say that being a dad is the best thing to ever happen to them. You can’t really explain it, but there is a biological shift and there is literally not a single second that your heart doesn’t melt while with your baby.

Sure, there have been some of the typical new dad adjustments. Sleeping three or four hours a night, learning how to dress a 6-pound infant that somehow has the strength of Andre the Giant, changing diapers in the wee hours of the morning while your head is ringing from the blood curdling shrieks of a cold, cranky baby. Those were some of the things that used to concern me, but now, bring it on. I’ll take every second I can get with that little boy.

Every day there is something new, something that surprises me, something that I learn. Whether it be his little personality traits that are finally starting to unveil themselves, or tips and tricks to handling the minute details of child rearing. I am a fish to water and it is all because of how much I adore Wesley. He has me wrapped around his little finger and I have no interest in unraveling myself, ever.

As much as I have enjoyed the day-to-day life as a new parent, I’d be lying if I told you that I have not been peeking ahead to the future. I can’t wait.

I can’t wait to see him mature, I can’t wait to see his interests, skills and ambitions. Even if he grows to be too cool to hang out with his old man, he will always be my closest friend.

Another aspect of fatherhood that has been unbelievable is how much it strengthens the relationships within your family, even with those people that you have loved the most since day one.

My mother is so thrilled to have her first grandchild, or as she calls him, “her little chicken.” Seeing my older brother hold his first nephew has been rewarding, it has brought out a beautiful side to him that I have never seen.

Arynne’s family has also come down from Vermont to lend a hand and they have been incredible resources of knowledge and guidance. Joining our families by blood has been such a joy.

More than anyone, it has made me love Arynne more than ever. She did the heavy lifting for the past nine months, and hell, she is still running circles around me despite pushing out 6 pounds, 15 ounces of perfection just days ago.

The past few weeks I have been joking that he would arrive on June 20 at midnight and that I would miss Father’s Day by a second. I would have welcomed him any day that he saw fit, but I was hoping that he’d reach the June 19 deadline.

Sure enough he did, and I was able to celebrate my first Father’s Day with him and the rest of the family. It was the most fun I ever had celebrating a holiday, and the best gift that I have ever received.

I am honored to be a father and am madly in love with this little human being. I finally get it, I finally have felt the greatest of loves. This past week has been the best of my life.

Happy belated Father’s Day to all the dads out there. Wesley, I love you.

Editor's Note: Alex Sponseller serves as Sports Editor for the Johnston Sun Rise, Warwick Beacon and Cranston Herald. Contact Alex at alexs@rhodybeat.com

My Pitch, sports column

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