Daddy's (Temporary) Homecoming

Way too long after the fact (I'm sorry!), here are some memories of Navid's two week rest and recreation time.

I wanted to prepare Alex as well as possible to see his Daddy again, so for the weeks before Navid came home, we spent a lot more time than usual looking at pictures and videos of Daddy. I'd have Alex point out where Daddy was in the picture, and would tell him how excited Daddy was to see him again. In at least one aspect, this worked very well. To this day, Alex still points at the computer every time he sees it and calls out "Dada!" So I felt fairly confident that Alex would be pretty excited to see Daddy when we were able to pick him up at the airport.

One frustration was that we had no idea when he would arrive. Navid kept me updated about when he left his team, and when he left the country, and told me that he might be a few days later than he had planned. Even knowing that, it was really frustrating to try to plan for his arrival without knowing when he'd actually arrive. So I spent a few days in intense anticipation. Then one day we got a call from him saying that he'd be here at the airport in four hours!

As we drove to the airport, I kept repeating over and over to Alex, "Daddy's coming home! We're going to pick up Daddy!" I kept chanting as we parked and ran to the gate. And when I finally saw Navid, I yelled out "There's Daddy!" and ran to give him a big hug. After all that Daddy talk and preparation, I thought Alex would be pretty interested in seeing Daddy, and would go straight into his arms. After all, even if he didn't quite remember him, Alex is generally pretty interested in new people.

What I wasn't prepared for was Alex's reaction: he glared at Navid with the scariest expression I've ever seen on his face. Daggers were practically coming out of his eyes. He refused to let Navid hold him, and was evidently quite angry. Oh dear! Not exactly the picture-perfect welcoming home I had hoped for!

By the time we got in the car, Alex was thawing a bit. And by the time we arrived home, Alex was having a grand time with his Daddy. It was so precious to see him show Navid around the apartment, taking him to all his favorite places and showing his favorite toys. They played together for a while, having a wonderful time. When Navid went in to take a nap, Alex cried, and spent a long time wandering the apartment calling for him.

We were curious about Alex's initial reaction, and kept coming up with theories to explain it. Was he mad that Daddy had been gone for so long? Did he just not recognize him? A few days later, we got our explanation when Alex again started shooting daggers out his eyes as Navid gave me a shoulder massage. Jealousy! After having my undivided attention for so long, Alex was very jealous to see me hugging someone else. However, he adapted quickly, and was so happy to have Daddy around to play with!

Here's one of my favorite videos, of Alex and Daddy at the park. I love the "ahhhhhhh" he makes when he finally goes down the slide.