SWEET REWARDS.

The other day I went to work on a project at a friend's house. It was early, the sun was starting to rise and I was rushing around the cabin trying to get things together to go. Further had just woken up––he sleeps pretty much all night, with milk breaks, naturally––and Hannah was bouncing him in his chair. I said bye to my wife, and then knelt down beside Further to say goodbye to him as well.When he saw me for the first time that morning he looked straight at me, smiled and laughed. And I swear to God, my heart melted right into my feet.Apologies for the cornball factor of this next paragraph, but I don't know how people survive this part of the parenting process. It's not the hard work, or the inconsolable moments. It's not the pee or poop on everything you own. It's the smiles. It's the odd little snoring noises they make. It's the tiny hands, and tiny feet and glimpses of recognition that bring a crippling amount of joy into our bodies. That, more than anything, is what's been hard about parenthood so far––surviving the sweetness.What's fascinating to me, though, is that babies don't try and trick you. Their needs and wants, as author Dr. Sears teaches us, are one and the same. He's not smiling to get something out of us. When he's smiling, it means he's happy, and our reactions to his cries and smiles are genuine. They're biological. If a baby is not happy, it cries and you can feel it––your body tells you to help him, he's in need. And if a baby is smiling, it means you're doing things right. That's why your body fills up with endorphins that tell you to keep doing whatever it is, because whatever it is, is working. I guess that's how parents survive these first few months. They get through the hard nights, the pee and poop, rewarded handsomely by nature with a dose of endorphins that keep you going––that keep you working for that next smile to tell you "Good work, Mama and Papa––you're on the right track." And that smile before I left the house, kept me going all day.- Jesse.