Babies

Quote: Babies don't need fathers, but mothers do. Someone who is taking care of a baby needs to be taken care of.
Amy Heckerling.

I always imagined that babies would never really inspire me in themselves. Rather the potential and the learning and interaction that comes later is what I imagined would inspire me. This, I found is way too simplistic. There is a continuum between what happens before, during and after birth and through babiehood. What you do and see at any point has consequences down the track for the relationship with the person that the baby becomes. The old stereotypes of the father as a provider and the mother as a nurturer still linger, but they are gradually being trampled on by the reality that the breakup of duties has got to be eternally flexible. Women are still from Venus and Men from Mars, but both sides need to be in touch with the grand scheme, and its a two person juggling act now and that makes for fancier tricks, but more balls to keep in the air. For instance, my wife so often spots ways in which a nursery (or any room in the house) would be more efficient, but I have the strength to actually move the furniture around. Tag team with feeding, changing, waking, sleeping schedule is so much better for overall morale than insisting "Hey that's your job!". When one partner comes home from work, it should be seen as a shift change. That first hour home is critical. Get the chores out of the way in a tag-team format, as a morale boost for the baby-keeper leaving time to relax together later, the three of you (or two, if baby manages to go to sleep). Home chores with baby is so often a thankless, tedious, frustrating job (one where resigning is not an option) that the fact that you are your own boss is a curse (much like most small businesses I know:)).
The old days where a father would keep their distance from babies, and then involve themselves more (when they are older) if they need disciplining, or help with homework or to teach them where the beer is in the fridge - are long gone. The social dynamics of families is now beginning to enter the public domain with shows like "Supernanny" and "Honey we're killing the kids". If you try to fight the developing social norms you will increasingly be called on it. Coming home with demands of dinner being ready, house being clean, to watch the news in its entirety etc. will become legal grounds for divorce. If you are a clown you can drop the ball sometimes and be forgiven. However, if you continue to drop the ball, and fail to juggle in a team, the circus will throw you out (or sometimes put you in the human cannon machine and ensure the safety net is faulty). Also demands for dinner without being involved in the cooking is just asking for extra ingredients of dubious merit (eg. saliva, itching powder, cyanide, cholesterol) at the very hint of your relationship souring.