truth or dare

When you ask God for help, do you mean it? Or are you just playing a game?

Anyone who has been reading my blog would understand that I am content. I love my wife and children. I am grateful for the things that I have and successfully reduced the amount of things that I would regularly covet elsewhere. I don’t really ask much for myself but I do insist on much for my family. I have always considered myself a “provider“.

what kind of son are you…dad?

“It’s not only children who grow.  Parents do too.  As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours.  I can’t tell my children to reach for the sun.  All I can do is reach for it, myself.”                                                                                    ~Joyce Maynard
 

My son grows to be more and more like me every day. I can imagine my daughter will follow. I never really concerned myself with that much because, heck, I like myself! I mean, we all have our ups and downs, but for the most part, I’m OK. Now, of course I want my kids to be better than “OK”, but find great comfort in the fact that in the worst case scenario, at least they would be as insanely happy as I am.

my wife has decided to leave me

 …and I will help her pack!

My wife was invited to go on a 5 day vacation with her Mother and Sister to go to visit her Niece that lives a few thousand miles away. We talked about it that night and discussed: when it was, what it would entail, and how long it would be for. Financially, it would be a strain to take the family, so the conversation was centered on the understanding that it could only be her that goes, leaving the rest of us behind.

gumballs from heaven

Never miss out on an opportunity to feed you children!

Family Life is full of opportunities to get involved. It is never difficult to find a subject for a lesson to teach your children. All you have to do is wait…

We had to run some errands after church.

My daughter (8) is very vocal and honest and has no dimmer control on her inner monologue switch, so I was well aware that she was not happy about the trip. She is super smart and an Oscar winning actress, so when the “tired face” came on I knew I had to act fast. So here was the plan…

nothing is perfect

I think that the payoffs for working hard at growing a family are the moments that you are not “required”.

Please notice that I did not say absent. I mean the times that you are together and it feels like you are floating on a lazy river with a cool drink and the perfect amount of sun block. Your children are content (for some unknown reason), your wife feels safe/appreciated/loved, and everything mechanical in your house is operating properly (some even without the duct tape). A double bonus is when this goes down on a Saturday or Sunday.

I have heard some people describe family life as a never ending and exhausting duty. I have heard some people say that raising kids is a thankless job. I have heard people say that there spouse can never be satisfied. I look at those people and notice they always seem tired.

parenting on purpose

Wednesday night is “Game Night” at our house.

There are simple expectations for each of us that night. We get home from our daily responsibilities, each being a bit different. We eat dinner together (We try to as often as we can), attempt to have stimulating conversations, and immediately follow it with some kind of game or activity that involves all of us. (It’s usually a board game). Sometimes we separate into teams, other times it’s every person for themselves.

I must admit a few things:

the Microscope, the Magnifying Glass, and the Mirror

What do you see when you look at your wife?

A microscope could reveal a number of things. A mole, hairs, or perhaps an unsightly blemish. It could also focus on a negative remark or a poor attitude. A magnifying glass could expose wrinkles, grey hairs, or an unfortunate scar. It could also exaggerate sarcasm or overemphasize an opinion. If you turned a mirror just right, you could catch an angle or a glimpse of something that she would have paid handsomely for you never to find out about her. She may even give you back the “pants in the family” for a week in the hope that the gyrations from your victory dance would give you amnesia.

With the right tools you could pick her apart. I mean you could really get to the bottom of proving to her that she should be honored that she was lucky enough to be chosen by a specimen such as yourself. After all…

“I’m a man who discovered the wheel and built the Eiffel Tower out of metal and brawn. That’s what kind of man I am. You’re just a woman with a small brain. With a brain a third the size of us. It’s science.”                      -Ron Burgandy 2004

tone deaf

I spent quite some time trying to come up with a catchy name, title, look and feel to this, my first blog page. I somehow felt that its success (whatever that means) would rely on the tone (please refer to the title reference) of the initial visit of whomever mysteriously stumbled across my page. I was concerned with the “catchy” heading and the “interesting feel” of the layout as well as the deep and intelligent first posting. I was going over all of the people that I assumed would visit, at my request, and all of the people that they would recommend to visit due to its incredible insight and ground breaking topics of discussion. I was also wondering when the last time the Pulitzer was given to an Italian?

So I started writing my first post… <enter>my son…

“Hey Dad what’s up”? (reads screen) “Who wrote that stuff”?

Then I realized that all that “goo” wasn’t me at all. It had nothing to do with what my intentions are for this blog thing. Come to think of it, I have little or no expectations for this as it is a new experience for me all together. I can, however, tell you what I hope…

I hope to be a help to someone. I hope to encourage. I hope to shed some light on anything! I have been told, more than once, so I assume its true, that I have a pretty cool way of speaking to people about situations they are in that I am familiar with. I enjoy sharing things about who I am that prove to be beneficial to others that are open to suggestions and in similar situations.

So here’s the deal…

I’m going to randomly speak about being a husband to my wife for almost 14 years (Aug 21, 1993), a father to my children (boy 12 girl 8), a good neighbor, and a friend. I may speak about work, fitness, bowling (don’t laugh), books, or movies, but probably how they relate to my family. I also like to speak from the viewpoint of a guy and I will probably be more funny than deep.

Cause that’s how I roll…