OK, I'll probably regret this but hey ho... it is so hard to read about yourself and not be able to explain the background. I will change my name after this although I am not a regular poster, just a regular lurker.
The writer of the piece, my dp, had plenty of time alone with his daughter before the time he was left alone with her overnight. He had spent whole days with her, had given her baths, fed her, took her to the swings, looked after her for days while she was poorly with gastroenteritis and unable to go to the nursery, took her to the doctor, everything any parent would do. He is a very hands-on parent. We share parenting equally. I am a slight control freak and I do organise the house work and therefore I tend to tell him what needs to be done in the householod. But I know he is a very able man and should I be run over by a bus tomorrow I am certain that our two daughters will be in perfectly capable hands.
The article in question is an extract of a book and therefore does not allow for much background setting. The book is a memoir, so yes, it is self-indulgent but that is the point, really. The article has been published to publicise the book as it is customary. He is not friends with the editor, he is a freelance journalist trying to bring some money home. The book is about how, like many other people, he found the idea of being a father really scary, even though we had been trying for quite a while. Yes, his reaction to the pregnancy was hard to take, but we are very honest with our feelings and we worked through his fear and mine together. We both felt numb when our daughter was born, and talking to other people, we don't seem to be that rare in this. But like many others, the more time we spent with our baby the easier it got. My dp, dh now, has written about this because he can and has been given the opportunity, although I would not expect everyone to like his style or empathise with his experience. I have been with him for fifteen years and I am biased but he is a very kind person and a very good father.
And re the drinking, it was not a lot of wine over a very extended session with food included. I know my dh, he can not get stupidly drunk, he was just a little merry and should the need arise he would have responded appropriately. He had gotten up at night many times before and he still does with our second child.
As you can it is not that exciting...