I have only been a father for a little over two years now, yet every day as a father, while always holding their moments of angst and questioning, shows me more and more how much fun being a father can be. I don't know how many other father's let their two year olds help install a hardwood floor in their house, but this past weekend, I did. As I am slaving away to get our son's new room done so his little brother or sister can move into his current room upon birth, this past weekend brought about the installation of his new floor. It was yet another whole day event, similar to the previous Saturday that was spent sheet rocking, and yet, unlike last weekend, I was able to get the floor mostly done in one day without my wife and son going elsewhere to spend the night. For a good portion of the day, my wife went out with her mother and our son. They did some shopping, our son took his nap in the car, and by the time they came home, I was more than half way done with the room. As nothing seriously dusty or toxic was going on, upon their return they made their way up to the room to check on the progress. Well, our son being at the inquisitive age that he is, he walked right in and started looking at all the wood and tools lying around. The first stop he made was at the boxes of flooring that were laid out. Since that was his first stop, I asked him to bring a piece over to where I was working. Without a moment's hesitation, he picked one up and brought it over. With him in the mood to help, I figured that I would show him how to put the floor in. With his help, we placed the piece where it needed to go. I then showed him the small piece of wood I used as a hammer block to knock the piece in tight. He had to help with the hammer, so with his hands on it, we both swung and knocked the piece tight into place. Then came the flooring nailer which tried to pick up on his own with very little success. The rubber mallet, lighter obviously than the nailer, he was able to pick up and with my help, we swung it and hit the nailer to drive nail in and secure the floor down. Every time we swung that mallet and the nailer went off the biggest smile burst on to his face. He was incredibly excited to be helping put the floor down, especially with the big tools that I was using. We got one more piece in together, and then I was torn with having him continue to help me or having him go downstairs so I could fly along and finish using the flooring nailer. I decided ultimately that since I had limited time left, I had to work by myself. It was a very difficult decision because there was nothing that I wanted more than to have him help me, despite the fact that he is only a little over two and doesn't completely understand the process.
The decision tore at me even more as he was taken out of the room screaming and crying, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy..." Every time I came downstairs to cut some more pieces of flooring, I opened up the wound and while he got excited at first, he soon burst into tears as he realized that he couldn't come upstairs with me to work on the floor. It was just one of those times when as much as I wanted him to help, I needed to get things done quickly and he would have hindered that process. At least I had him help me for a few pieces. After I was done with the nailer and brought it downstairs, he tried grabbing the mallet and hitting the nailer where we had hit it, just without success as the air hose wasn't attached to it. His curiosity and desire to help never ceases to amaze me. Then yesterday, when we went into his new room just to take a look, I decided to have him help me put a few more floor boards down, this time by hand as it was near the end of the room. I pre-drilled the holes for the nails and had him put the nails into the holes for me so I could hammer them in. He wanted to use the hammer, but as it is a little more than half his size, I really didn't want him putting too many dents in the floor. He had the right idea though and knew where he needed to hit the nails. He also was putting pieces of flooring in by himself and trying to put the hammer block on the edge so he could get the piece nice and tight. We got a few pieces in together before we went back downstairs. I love the help that I got. I know that when he gets a little bit older and bigger, he will be even more help as we work on projects together. At this age, its still a little tough. And yet, everything I show him, he can replicate even if he doesn't understand the concepts behind what he is doing. This age is truly amazing. The brain of a two year old is like a sponge. Everything they hear and see gets absorbed and can be replicated with ease. That is part of why I don't hesitate showing him everything I am doing. His curiosity is there and I don't want to be the one to diminish it or squash his desire to learn. I love my little helper, mostly because he is my son, but also because he is just amazing.
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