Love is all around us

You can tell so much about a guy from the way he behaves during his wife's labor and delivery. Over the last week I've met guys who hide in the corner talking on the phone, surfing the net while their wives scream in pain, guys who lie there asleep while she tries to entertain herself, and guys who talk about getting the nurse's attention by knocking over her coffee. Seriously, can you not use your words? Sometimes when we leave the room, the attending and I just look at each other and shake our heads. Last night after meeting one particularly idiotic one, Dr. J comes out and says, "I've decided most men are stupid." That said, you also meet the guys who are the opposite of all that - amazing.

The last dad-to-be I met last night was just that. I've never seen a sweeter man. He was there by her side the entire time, feeding her ice chips, wiping away the sweat from her face, stroking her hair, holding her hand. He was the best personal coach, counting to 10, cheering her on, "Dig hard, you can do it baby!" Sometimes in between contractions he would lean his head against her leg and kiss her knee. He was cute, smart, funny and loving. At one point he turns to me and says that the hardest part about being a husband is having to sit back and watch his wife go through this. "If I could do this for her I would. I would do anything for her." He couldn't wait to help change the diapers, to clean the spit-up, to rock the baby to sleep, to cook and clean for his wife and to love their new baby, Felix. When the baby came he started crying, managed to grab the camcorder and start filming their beautiful baby's first moments. But after that, he was back by her side again, holding her hand, telling her how much he loved her and how proud of her he was.

I love that.