This Labor Day weekend has been all about the babies for me. Rodney and I traveled to be with our family and had a great time. I got to spend time with my 4-year-old niece and my 5-month-old nephew. I love them both so much.

I don't have a lot of experience with children. I was the youngest child of 3 and most of my Mom's friends were done having children as well, which means I grew up around a lot of kids my age, but very few babies.

I'm now in my mid-20's, and each year I have become more interested in children. With each new birth in the family, I have worked to become more involved.

Someday down the road, Rodney and I will have children. Because he is 11 years older than I am, there is a definite presence of ticking clocks. Age-wise, we really need to have a child today in order for things to balance out. If we do it now, I will feel like I'm a bit too young. If we do it later, it will feel like Rodney is a bit too old.

The happy medium

Rodney still feels like he is in his 20's. He is youthful, energetic, and doesn't even look his age. "You're only as old as you feel" and Rodney has no worries about how the age gap might affect raising children. So as long as he feels young, then our ages will balance out.

He also has plenty of experience with children. He basically raised his 2 nephews, who are now in their early 20's. Rodney is great with children. I get inspired every time I see him with them. They love him, and it makes me look forward to the future.

Ideally, I would like Rodney to be able to quit work and raise our child(ren). If we can do it financially, he supports the idea. I guess I'm old-fashioned in the belief that one parent should stay home and take care of the child, cook, and take care of the home. Rodney is excellent at all these things.

And somewhere I would learn about being a father myself. Nobody is ever really prepared for children when they first start out. It's a learning experience, and I know I would pick up on it. This past weekend really has me thinking about when.

So those are my baby steps to fatherhood. I'm learning a lot from my nieces and nephews.