You're a girl!

Okay, so there is a chance that the title to this post is wrong.  Sometimes, they make mistakes when they determine gender prior to birth.  But you're probably a girl!  If you're not, my apologies.

With your two older brothers, I didn't want to know their genders until the day of birth.  At first, I didn't with you either.  But then your Mom and I had a discussion and I decided that I wanted to find out.

Some of your Mom's co-workers threw us a party to reveal the gender with cupcakes.  It was a fun little event, with a big bite into the cupcake revealing the color of frosting inside to tell us whether you were a boy or girl (pink vs. blue frosting).

I have to tell you that I am really excited to learn that you are a girl, but not for the same reason as most of the other Dads that I have talked to.

When a father has a daughter, the event is usually decked out in the trappings of "Daddy's Little Princess."  I've been told that I will be amazed by the unconditional love that a daughter will have for me.  I've been told that I will love having "Daddy's Little Girl."  Weebs, at not even two and not even understanding anything yet, has been told by others that he will be his "sister's protector."

But those are not the things I'm excited for.  In fact, I hope that all of those things are not true.

I don't want unconditional love from you.  To me, that's the wrong direction for love to flow unconditionally.  I will always love you unconditionally, and I want you to always know that.  But I want you to love me back for what I do for you, and for the happiness that I bring into your life.

I don't want you to be my little princess.  I want you to be big and strong and amazing.  I want you to take the world by storm and be my warrior, my powerful force of nature.  In short, I want you to be like your Mom.

I don't want Weebs to be your protector.  I want him to be your friend, your ally, and your confidante.  In all things, I want you to be equals, and I hope you will grow up in a world where you are able to do and attain everything that he does.

I'm excited because I cannot wait to see the kind of girl that your Mom and I can raise.

The simple fact is that, Twoops, you're going to have the deck stacked against you a little bit.  Unless the world has drastically changed by the time you read this, for a lot of things in life you're going to have to work at least a little harder to get the things you deserve and earn.

Know that I will always be there for you, ready to lend a hand if there is any way I can help you knock down walls and break through ceilings.

It isn't going to be easy.  I've witnessed your Mom running into it on many occasions.  But you couldn't possibly have a better role model than the one who we both love.  Your Mom played Football (American Football, not soccer).  Your Mom strong-armed her way into Medical School and into surgery (a currently predominantly male profession).

I can't wait to see what you do.

Love,

Dad