Let me start off this post by sharing these great photos of Dash and his daddy. I think they say it all:

(This is Preston smothering Dashiell in kisses):

For all of November and December, Preston stayed at least four days a week at home with Dashiell. I saw the bond between them grow. Dashiell is such a daddy's boy now. Often, when Preston enters the room, Dashiell cranes his neck so he can see him. Dash's entire face brightens, and he smiles and giggles with such glee.

Of course, I'm very happy for Preston. I used to joke with him that he was now "No. 1" and I was clearly "No. 2." A small piece of me missed the Dash who let me know that I was the absolute coolest person in the world. Preston points out that Dash still does smile at me a lot. Sometimes we debate about who he smiles more at. And then we give up, because it's such a silly argument.

Dash started day care on Jan. 3. It was much easier for me to leave Dash at home with Preston than with strangers at day care. When I left him there the first few days, the guilt really set in. Sure, plenty of other parents have put their kids in day care, and I've been just fine with that. There was no judging on my part. At all. People have to work -- for both the money and the mental stimulation.

But my view of day care is different with Dash because he's my baby. I want to be spending my days with him. I hate leaving him with people who are paid to watch him. He has no idea why I'm dropping him off for eight or nine hours each day in a giant room with 15 other babies, one or two babies in particular who seem to be shrilly crying every time I am there (I won't name names). It is loud! Sometimes almost all the babies are crying at the same time. The day-care employees call this "the chorus." OK, I have to chuckle at that description. 

The ratio of our day care is about one employee for every 3.5 babies. That's better than the state average of one employee for every four babies. That makes me feel a tad bit better. Also, we thought this day care was more with-it than some of the other day cares we'd seen. Every day, Dash's "teacher" lays out an agenda focusing on mental and physical child development. Today, the activities included pointing out that we all have two eyes and one nose, playing with toys that make noise and focusing on crawling (although that's still a long way's off for Dash). 

I also feel a little better about leaving Dash in day care because he is such a social guy. He genuinely likes looking at other babies. 

I'll leave you with one last photo of Dash and his daddy, taken on New Year's Day. Daddy's arms = a pretty darn good place to be!