Beard-free and Unrecognizable

Who IS that?

I prefer Ryan with a beard. Let’s just get that out in the open. It’s a bit of his signature feature, and it might be true that some of his post-college friends may have never seen him without it. (Emma Vance definitely hasn’t ever seen Dada’s bare face, that’s for sure.)

I do love his beard. However, every once in a while he gets a wild idea to shave, and after the initial shock of seeing his baby face, I always remember that I also like him with just a little scruff. (Never clean shaven, though.) Ryan had a few meetings with more formal-type clients recently, so at the end of last week, he said goodbye to his beard for June. I begged him not to shave clean, so he’s a little shadowy still, which I prefer. :) Emma Vance, on the other hand, did NOT take to his new look quite as easily.

She first saw him beard-free during her bath, and despite it typically being her happiest, most playful time of the day, she dropped everything and just stared. And stared. And stared. She peered up at Ryan with the best confused look on her face I’ve ever seen. In fact, it took almost a full 24 hours for her to recognize Ryan and to adjust accordingly. Every time she saw her dada, it was like she was thinking, “Uh, excuse me, sir? You look kinda’ familiar, but I can’t put my baby finger on where I’ve seen you before…”

And then, today, Ryan sent me the above picture from D.C. in a suit and tie, which is almost unheard of for him unless it’s a formal occasion. (You win, Captiol Hill!) Although I don’t desire for Ryan to become a suit-and-tie 9-to-5-er (not because it’s bad, but because I love our lives right now), I could get used to this–every once in a while. Emma Vance, on the other hand, may take another full 24 hours to recognize him all dressed up–ha!

Taken just pre-de-bearding.

E.V.: “What the…”

“Dada? Are you in there?”

“Save me from the strange man, Mama!”