It’s only a matter of time now… Fame and fortune have to be just around the corner! My fledgling career as a songwriter officially began yesterday morning when my youngest daughter, Cakes, made her “unofficial” singing debut! If you are new to this blog, Cakes can really sing!…not in a “Wow, your voice is so amazing” [...]
I write the songs…
May 22nd, 2010Category: Children
I can’t really say that I am surprised
April 14th, 2010If yesterday’s news regarding the house wasn’t challenging enough, my son called me from Philadelphia. He talked with the wrestling coach… It doesn’t look like he is going to be awarded a wrestling scholarship! That might be a problem…Drexel is a very expensive school! I left a message on the coach’s voice mail last night. He called me [...]
Category: Children
You got written up for what?
February 22nd, 2010This may come as a shock to some of you, but I have been having a long distance relationship for more than two years. Actually, I am in several simultaneously. It so much more difficult to communicate. I tell you that it is SO much better when you are face to face… But, what other [...]
What else am I going to do?
February 20th, 2010This stage of being a parent is…how shall I put this…challenging. When my children were younger, they had to listen to me…or else! Now that they are launching out on their own, I have to watch them make mistakes. Let me tell you, it is highly overrated! I get no pleasure out of it, no [...]
She didn’t get it from a bottle
November 28th, 2009My oldest daughter drove up from Dallas to visit us for thanksgiving last night. Even though I talk with her on the phone fairly often, I had forgotten one of her most endearing traits… She is a blonde! In the course of conversation, she mentioned that her car needs new tires. “What size are your [...]
No shave November
November 9th, 2009My youngest daughter came home from school and provided me with some pop culture enlightenment “Did you know that it is “No Shave November?” “No, I didn’t. What does that mean.” “All of the guys at school don’t shave during the month of November. “Oh.” “Did you have that when you were young.” “No.” “Even [...]
Category: Children
A difference of opinion
October 30th, 2009I got home from work late today. I had just emptied all of the lunch dishes out of my lunch bag into the kitchen sink when my youngest daughter, Cakes, came out of her bedroom all dressed in black. She works tonight. “”Hi, dad” “Hi.” “How are you?” “Fine.” “Look at this!” She then reached [...]
Category: Children
A tornado’s view of Nashville
September 13th, 2009I planned to get into Nashville at midnight… But we left NJ an hour late… and I didn’t expect the hours worth of stop and go traffic when we left D.C. … So, we got into Nashville at 2:30 A.M.! This little Nashville diversion all started when I called my second daughter about two weeks ago [...]
Pretty quick progress!
August 30th, 2009Cakes came home from her job at the restaurant and said that she had good news The manager asked her if she would train all of the new hostesses! She is only 16 and has only been working there for 3 months! I think they like her!
Category: Children
He’s done!
July 16th, 2009Big A woke up this morning with his knee hurting pretty badly. His visit to the hospital confirmed the pain. He tore his lower collateral ligament. On a scale of 1-3, the doctor thinks it is a 2-3 in severity. Thankfully, this is not one of the two major ligaments (anterior cruciate [ACL] and medial collateral} that [...]
Category: Children
Oh for two
July 14th, 2009We had been on the road home from Denver for about three hours when my son called me. He is training with the Kansas state freestyle team this week before heading to Fargo, ND to compete in the nationals. “Dad, a guy had my leg and was trying to take me down. I was fighting [...]
Just drop the ‘L’
July 11th, 2009I guess it wouldn’t be Fargo time without having to overcome a significant injury… Last year at about this time, one of the top Junior wrestlers in the country rammed his head into Big A’s sternum during a Mo-West practice. He was in pain right up to and through the tournament. This year, that same [...]
Category: Children
It’s time to stop talking about it
July 6th, 2009If everything goes according to plan, in six days my youngest daughter and I will be driving to Denver, CO. We will then spend the next two days standing in REALLY long lines with thousands (perhaps tens of thousands) of other people at INVESCO Field (formerly Mile High Stadium) and then drive 9 hours back to [...]
Category: Children, Goals, Parenting, Travel
Give it a good whack!
July 5th, 2009My son’s birthday is in September. I finally gave him last year’s present… I took him golfing! He had never done it before. As we got my clubs out of storage and started cleaning up the bag, memories started coursing through my mind. I haven’t played golf in over 15 years! We arrived about 1 [...]
Category: Children
Do you want some cheese to go with that?
June 30th, 2009You won’t believe what I heard when I got home from work… As you probably know by now, my son is rapidly becoming a very good wrestler; good enough to wrestle in college. And, wrestlers generally have the reputation of being pretty tough… One of the pitfalls of achieving some success in life is the natural human tendency to [...]
Category: Children
Today’s big surprise
May 31st, 2009I wanted to stop so, so badly. After my 60th climb up the stairs, I was tired…pooped. Man, were the excuses flowing…”I worked so hard yesterday…I’m almost 50 years old…” But the work had to get done…today. What am I going to do, let my wife and kids do it??? So, I pressed on. My [...]
Category: Children, Real Estate
That should help!!!
May 27th, 2009There are times when you just need to keep trying… The letter of appeal is getting closer to being a finished product. I still need to write the opening paragraph. I think that it has been good for my son to witness the process. The finished product might make it look like magic, or that [...]
Category: Children, Money, Providence, Work
Was it a conspiracy?
May 5th, 2009We got home from the banquet last night at 9:00. I was tired!!! I had no sooner got in the door and my son asked me if I could help him with his college essay. I’m telling you, I did not want to. Man I did not want to. But, I’m supposed to the the mature [...]
That teenage brain thing again
May 4th, 2009I was hot… I shouldn’t have been, but I was… He’s got a lot on his plate right now. SAT’s, AP Calculus test, essays for college applications, graduation in 1 1/2 weeks… But still… The last time that I spoke with the Drexel coach, we agreed to figure out the best time for my son to make “official” visit to [...]
Category: Children
Just too dang polite
April 30th, 2009My son drove the Honda to wrestling practice last night. It is about 50 miles for the whole trip. When he got home, he was thoughtful enough to tell me that the car was almost out of gas rather than letting me discover this fact when I left for work this morning. I don’t know [...]
A Kansas tornado in Philadelphia?
April 20th, 2009Tomorrow is Decision Day. The Baker coach called to confirm our dinner appointment tomorrow night. I called the Drexel coach. He answered the phone again! That’s three times in a week! He received last week’s e-mail. It sounded like he was very excited about bringing my son to his school. He said that they are working [...]
The latest ambush
April 7th, 2009As you know, I have two high school aged children left in our home. Every now and then, I get ambushed by their developing brain. I use the word ambush because the situation arises so suddenly and unexpectedly that I know of no way to prepare for it in advance. This past weekend, I worked fairly dilgently [...]
Category: Children
You just don’t hear that very often
March 20th, 2009I called the coach who has been training my son for the last few days to see how it has been going. He said he was really surprised at how strong Big A is, said he has really good technique and is a natural at the sport. That was good to hear from a disinterested [...]
Category: Children
My film making debut
March 8th, 2009After watching several hours of my son’s wrestling footage, I decided against a “highlight” reel approach. I did not make this decision because there weren’t that many. Au contraire, mi amigo. He did things this year that I have never seen! I mean unconventional… like attacking a guy who has both of your arms pinned [...]
Category: Children
Just like he dreamed
February 27th, 2009Last night, my son dreamed that he pinned a certain kid. For that dream to come to pass, both of them would have to win their first two matches to meet in the semi-finals. They did, The first period ended in a scoreless tie, 0-0. But, it was far from uneventful. There were at least four [...]
Category: Children
Almost eliminated!
February 20th, 2009My wife called me this morning to tell me that she took my son to see the doctor. “Why?” “Because the coach noticed ringworm on his leg and said he had to get clearance from a doctor before he would let him wrestle.” Keep in mind that tomorrow is the Regional tournament. If he wins [...]
Category: Children
What was I afraid of?
February 18th, 2009Before I left for work this morning, I asked my wife what time our son got home from his study session… “1:00″ “1:00 A.M?” “Um, hmm” “On a school night?” “Then, when he came home, he got on Facebook for a half hour!” I woke him up at 6:00 A.M. to inform him that he [...]
Things that make me go hmmmm?
February 14th, 2009I just watched my youngest daughter play Erma in the high school version of Cole Porter’s musical “Anything Goes”. She did a great job. Now, before you ‘knowingly’ roll your eyes and mutter to yourself, “What father wouldn’t say that!”, I do not say that because I am her father. I am actually one of [...]
Category: Children
What’s an hour?
February 4th, 2009I left work 1/2 hour early this evening so I would be able to make it to my son’s last regular season wrestling match. I drove 30 miles home to pick up my wife and then drove 40 minutes to go see the match. I was concerned that we might miss his match because we [...]
Category: Children
He’s getting famous
January 28th, 2009I forgot something very important in my last post about Big A’s wrestling this weekend. His victory in the final was covered by three newspapers: Husky Headlines (the local school paper), Sun Publications and the Sunday edition of the Kansas City Star, the main paper for the city! Here is a link to their online [...]
Category: Children
The smiling champion!
January 27th, 2009If you have been reading this blog recently, you know that my son won a major wrestling tournament this weekend. The new rankings were released today and Big A is now the fifth rated 160 pounder in the state. The college coach (NAIA level so he is not bound by NCAA regulations) has already e-mailed [...]
Category: Children
Champion!
January 24th, 2009In the middle of the week, I got this feeling that this weekend’s wrestling tournament was important. I had no idea how important. I will tell part one tonight. I arrived at the school Friday night at 5:00. The parking lot was packed! Upon entering the gym, I learned that there were 26 schools competing. [...]
Category: Children
Is he ducking Big A?
January 22nd, 2009It is getting to the fun time of the wrestling season. The league championship is just a few weeks away. Last night, my son’s school was facing the school of the kid who beat him in the finals of the Johnson County tournament just one month ago. Big A has been looking forward to a rematch [...]
Category: Children
Much more than I had hoped for
January 16th, 2009I have once again been amazed at the goodness of God! In previous posts, I have told you about the dramatic changes that God has been bringing about in my second daughter. As profound as the last big change was, it turned out that it was just the next big step. As a father, I [...]
It’s just not fair
January 14th, 2009I regularly run 4 miles and do not lose any weight. But I have no room to complain. My wife ran a marathon a few years ago and didn’t lose any weight! But my son ran three miles to school this morning and lost two pounds! He had to run to school. Why? Because he had [...]
Her prayers were answered!
January 5th, 2009The hullabaloo had a happy ending!…but not without a little twist. This morning we received “official” notification from the high school that the Great Books tutorials will be “acceptable” to the school district. I put those words in quotations because my youngest daughter’s school adviser sincerely encouraged her while confiding that she has not read [...]
It leaves when?
December 29th, 2008Does everything have to turn into an event? I left the apartment at 5:20 this morning to take my oldest daughter to the airport. No, I am not publishing the same post twice. This is a different day and a different daughter. Things were looking so much better than two mornings ago. The roads were [...]
Unfortunately, I saw it coming
December 22nd, 2008This post might make you wonder if I am just making all of these events up. I am beginning to wonder myself. I have two weeks left before I start my new job. Since it is 30 miles away, we will need a second car. While our F150 Super Crew pickup is a great family [...]
Category: Children
Brass!!!
December 18th, 2008My son is such a man! In the essay section of his Comm Arts final, he had a choice of subjects: symbolism, rite of passage, or power. Big A chose to write about power. Instead of taking the safe path and essentially writing a glorified book report, he showed that every book that the class [...]
Category: Children
I blew it!
November 28th, 2008After picking up my youngest daughter, Cakes, from work, I dropped off some bill payments at the Post Office and headed to the Apple store. I want to finish reviewing the past year so we could continue our celebration of Thanksgiving and all of it is safely recorded on my laptop and my back up [...]
Category: Children
The perfect set-up
November 27th, 2008I can’t fully tell this story without making a confession… On many nights, my wife and I sleep in separate rooms… not because my wife is mad at me! No! I am not in the doghouse. It is difficult for her to fall asleep so, since we have chosen to leave our television in the [...]
Category: Children
I’ve done the same thing
November 20th, 2008My poor son… He has to be at school every morning at 6:00 A.M. for the morning wrestling workout. He caused the team to do extra drills because he was late the first two days. Well, this morning he definitely was not late! He woke up, looked at the clock, panicked, threw some clothes on, [...]
Category: Children
Our own Shirley Temple
November 20th, 2008As I wrote that headline, I realize that most young people have no idea who she is. They can look it up. My youngest daughter, Cakes, got a “call back” after the first audition. She is competing for the third largest female role in the school musical. Lest my LA readers look down their nose [...]
Category: Children
You have a chance to change
October 21st, 2008My youngest daughter has started an exercise program this year. And like most people, she has struggled. She will get inspired, start vigorously, make a few allowances because she doesn’t “feel” like exercising, have a few small changes in her schedule that devour the time that she was going to exercise, and then she feels [...]
Category: Children, Goals, Parenting
What are you worth?
October 20th, 2008My son is a good looking young man. He gets that from his mother. However, he is going through a little test right now. As you probably have read, he is a wrestler. Wrestling requires close physical contact. Unfortunately, at the very end of the season, he came in contact with some bad stuff. First, [...]
Category: Children
A young lady blossoms
October 9th, 2008I am really blessed with GREAT children. I mean that-GREAT children. I first started talking to my youngest daughter about developing the character trait of self-control and the importance of setting goals when she came out to help me pack up our house in March. Over the past six months, she has really been making [...]
A manly decision
October 8th, 2008This morning, my wife told me my son got home at 3 IN THE MORNING!!! He was pretty frustrated when he learned that he had to work last night. He was looking forward to a very busy and productive night of homework. (he studies/worships at The Prayer Room) Well, when work was over at 8:00, [...]
Category: Children, Masculinity
Heard at our house #1
September 1st, 2008While my wife was preparing lunch, our youngest daughter walked up to our oldest daughter and said “I just want you to know that I’ve already told three people and posted it on Facebook that I am going to miss my big sister. She’s leaving.” My son then chimed in, “If it’s on Facebook, that [...]
Category: Children
Too much estrogen…
September 1st, 2008You’ve heard of chick flicks… Well, from time to time, I get trapped into living a chick’s life. Take the latest event as an example… I told my wife earlier this morning that I started crying while running this morning. I remembered a very touching video that my wife’s friend e-mailed her awhile back. I [...]
Category: Children, Marriage, Masculinity
Who is Tim Allen?
August 12th, 2008When my son asked me what he should call his budding new business, I made him choose it. He came up with a great one- HOME IMPROVEMENT. His tag line underneath his name is “The Homeowner’s Best Solution”. I told him that I thought that it was a winner. I helped him format it on [...]
Category: Children
My little disciple
August 10th, 2008My youngest daughter has taken the plunge. She is going to use her first daily planner. We found a pretty pink cover at Office Depot in the Bargain Bin for $8! She will be using “week-at-a-glance” pages that I designed and printed up. We discovered that both Staples and Office Depot ONLY “month-at-a-glance” pages for [...]
Is this the beginning of something big?
August 9th, 2008My son has been posting a flyer that advertises his handyman services on the public bulletin boards at several of the local supermarkets. He has received a few calls and done some very light work… UNTIL NOW! A homeowner was walking in his attic when he slipped and put his foot through the ceiling. He saw [...]
Those pictures are where?!?!
August 9th, 2008Yesterday morning, my wife convinced me to let her take a couple of pictures with my son since I am thinner than she has EVER seen me. The last time I was at this weight, I was 18 years old. I met her when I was 21. So, I took of my shirt, dusted off [...]
There is more than one way to plan!
August 4th, 2008We had to visit the doctor because my son picked up a skin infection from his last wrestling tournament. While I was waiting for the prescription to be filled at our local CVS, my youngest daughter wandered off. About 5 minutes later, she came and sat next to me with a sheepish look. I asked [...]
Category: Children
The young eagle takes its first flight out
August 1st, 2008While I was remodeling our house in California, my son was watching. In the last year before he moved, he became very helpful. In fact, we built the garage together! My son is starting to work for himself. Well, now he is starting to work for himself. He made up a flyer and posted it at several [...]
A Precious Jewel Recovered
July 26th, 2008In just a few short weeks, our youngest daughter will start attending a public high school for the very first time. My son went through this baptism last year. My wife home schooled all four of our children. One day, when our son and our youngest daughter were about 10 and 8 years old, my wife thought [...]
Clueless, the real version
July 20th, 2008As my youngest daughter and I drove to church, she remarked at how she loved the smell of her hair because of some mousse and gel she put in it. I remarked that she really enjoys smelling good things. She said, “I am sooo a smell person.” “Cakes, why don’t you at least practice English [...]
Category: Children
Pull over, son!
July 7th, 2008I have had a great 5 days today! The weather changes here about every two hours! My son got pulled over by a policeman today! This is the second time in three weeks! Have I said that he was a fine young man in previous posts? Maybe I should reconsider… The cop told him to [...]
Category: Children
Dad, am I flying Southwest?
July 3rd, 2008Twenty minutes into the drive to the airport, my youngest daughter asked me this question! She is flying to Dallas to spend some time with her oldest sister. “Did you print out your itinerary?” “No.” “Then how do you know what airline you are flying on?” “Well, I know my verification number.” “But you don’t [...]
Category: Children
He tricked me
June 21st, 2008My son took his new super duper VERY expensive skateboard when we went to the park. He tried to get me on it but I politely refused. Instead, I watched him send the board rolling in front of him, break into an all out sprint, jump on the board and then cruise effortlessly along. When he [...]
Something strange happened today
June 17th, 2008My youngest daughter came into the bedroom that I am organizing into an office/library and asked me: “Dad, can I listen to Zig Ziglar’s Goals tape series?” Uuuummmm… Is this a trick question?… let me think about that… you want to learn to set goals… hmmmm… that’s a tough one… She’s actually doing this voluntarily. [...]
Category: Children, Goals, Parenting
Let me see your license and registration…
June 14th, 2008My son called me on my cell phone today. He got pulled over by a policeman for not completely stopping at a stop sign. But, you know, it was on a country road… and there was no one in sight… and besided, he’s from California! Doesn’t this policeman understand that we Californians pioneered the “rolling [...]
Category: Children
Smart, but still a blonde!
June 7th, 2008My wife was reading the directions while I drove us to the rehearsal brunch. When we turned onto the actual street, she informed me that my oldest daughter was already there and had called her and told her that the restaurant was ”on the right side” of the street! Really? And how does she know that?? [...]
Category: Children, Friends, Parenting
The Beautiful Letdown, Part 8: The Reprieve
April 9th, 2008After we picked up the Nissan, I decided that I ‘deserved’ to treat myself to something fun to make up for the aggravation that I had just endured as a ‘good parent’ so I drove to the Apple store at the Plaza. I mean it makes sense. After all, I am in the process of [...]
Category: Children, Marriage, Money, Technology
Everything IS bigger here in Texas!
March 21st, 2008My oldest daughter met me at the airport and promptly took me out to eat at Cuba Libre on Henderson Street in uptown Dallas. Shortly after we were seated, a very immodest WILBO sat at the table next to us and really tested my self control. It wasn’t so much a matter of desire but [...]
Changing plans again!
March 19th, 2008My daughter’s flight departs for KC tomorrow morning at 6:15. She needs to be their one hour early and the airport is 40 minutes away IF there is no traffic. She has been visiting one of her best friends however I cannot let her ask them to take her to the airport at 4:30 IN [...]