BEIJING, June 16 -- "Yesterday I was my parents' child, and suddenly I am the parent of a child," Shen Shu, 26, recalls his feeling of overwhelming joy and shock when his daughter Yoyo was born nine months ago.

    Shen's wife became pregnant one year after they married, but it had not been their intention to procreate so soon. At the time Shen had just started work in the advertising department of a local newspaper in Nanjing, capital of East China'a Jiangsu province, and his wife earned a modest salary as college teacher. But Shen was nonetheless overjoyed at the prospect of the baby.

Shen Shu, 26, spends hours gazing at his baby daughter Yoyo.(Photo Source: China Daily) Photo Gallery>>>

    "I never thought of myself as a DINK husband," Shen admits. "I always wanted a baby. Looking back, perhaps 25 was a bit young to be a father, but as Yoyo has already arrived, I think the best thing is to accept her."

    Before the baby was born, both Shen and his mother hoped it would be a boy. But the moment she uttered her first cry, he realized he did not cared a whit about gender. The first thing Shen did when he was allowed into the delivery room was give her a big kiss and cuddle.

    Shen recalls that at first sight of his daughter, he thought: "This little thing is my daughter, I will care about her, love her and protect her all my life.

    On the day Yoyo was one-month old, Shen quit his job and, with a few friends, registered a small advertising firm. It was the baby that motivated him to start his own business. He opened a baby blog named "Grow with Yoyo" to record her life. Shen is now learning tennis, because he wants his daughter to be a dynamic and sporty girl.

    The only thing that makes the new father unhappy is the scant time that he and his wife have to spend with the baby. Soon after she was born, they took her to their hometown, a small city three hours' drive from Nanjing.

    Like most young men from small towns trying their luck in the big city, Shen finds it impossible to pursue a career and raise an offspring. Shen's parents, both over 50, take care of Yoyo and can afford all the necessary baby care expenses.

    "Ideally we would keep her with us at all times," Shen says. "But we are at the early stages of our careers and child minders are too expensive. And anyway, who could be more trustworthy than a baby's grandparents?"

    The couple misses Yoyo desperately. They call home almost every evening, even though the baby cannot talk, because they want her to hear their voices over the phone. They see her every two weeks. On a recent visit, the baby called them papa and mamma for the first time.

    "She'll come and live with us before she is 3," Shen says. "We need to be together, and there are better schools in the bigger cities."

    Shen says the biggest change the baby has made is that of instilling in him a stronger sense of responsibility. But as an only child, he admits that it takes time and effort to be a good father.

    "Occasionally I feel I am still a child myself," he says. "But less frequently these days."

    In a competitive society like today's China, Shen says he would not expect too much from his daughter. "As long as she is healthy, good at her studies, and fond of sports, I am satisfied," he says.

    (Source: China Daily)