Nostalgia

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2012 Christmas Vacation Family Road Trip Checklist

December 19, 2012 at 10:19 pm , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

In a couple of days, we will be loading up the Honda and making the 3 hour journey to my hometown of Fort Payne, Alabama to spend the Christmas holiday with my side of the family.

There is definitely potential for this road trip to be stressful…for all of us. So I want to do my part to make this as easy as possible for our family.

I’ve compiled a “2012 Christmas Vacation Family Road Trip Checklist” for us to go by. Let’s take a look:

For the car: snacks, bottled water, toys, books, crayons and coloring book, clean-up wipes and/or Kleenex, sunglasses, travel blanket, small garbage bag, iPod/CD’s

Necessary electronics: cellphone and charger, camera and charger, laptop and charger, compact DVD player and DVDs

For the destination: the Christmas gifts and cards, food to contribute to the Christmas dinner, family tradition activities (like board games and playing cards)

Toiletries: diapers, deodorant, toothbrush and toothpaste, contacts and contact solution, razor, unmentionables

Clothes: underwear, socks, t-shirts, casual and dress shoes, outdoor play clothes, indoor play clothes, church clothes, warm coat, light jacket, pajamas, hats

It seems that no matter how hard we try to prevent it, we always end up forgetting to pack something. I’m not saying this year will be the exception, but it’s worth a shot.

I designed the list with you in mind. In particular, I asked myself, “How can I do my best to keep Jack from being bored and/or hungry?”

We will pack some of your favorite toy trains, stuffed animals, plenty of Goldfish crackers in plastic baggies, a blanket for you to “make a house” with in the back seat, and even the Carbon Leaf CD which has several of the songs from the soundtrack to your favorite movie, Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey!

If you’re happy, then Mommy’s happy, and that means I’m happy.

Now, let’s start packing…

 

Love,

Daddy

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The Obligatory Facebook Picture Of Your Kid With Santa

December 16, 2012 at 10:05 pm , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

Yesterday Mommy and I took you to the Bass Pro Shop to get your picture made (for free!) with Santa. Despite our low expectations about how you would react, it went very well…

We were first in line, out of hundreds. More importantly, to my surprise, you didn’t cry.

Granted, I warned/prepared you all week:

“Jack, do you want to meet Santa on Saturday? Do you want Santa to hold you?”

Your response was always a grunted version of yes.

The more I thought about the concept all week, the more I realized how going to meet Santa Claus is sort of…peculiar.

There is no other situation where parents encourage their kids to sit on a stranger’s lap and get their picture taken.

At best, it compares a little bit to Halloween; how parents take their kids around the neighborhood peddling for candy. Under any other circumstances, that would never happen.

Still, I think going to visit Santa is a very cool and memorable thing.

Something that especially stood out to me when we met Santa at the Bass Pro Shop is that the last thing he said to you was “I love you.” And he said it like he meant it; like a grandfather would say it. He said it like he was waiting for a response.

I think about all the children who went after you in the Santa line. Not all of them hear “I love you” from a father figure as much as you do.

So here it is; this is the obligatory picture of you with Santa that I shared on Facebook. You may not remember it happening. Either way, I’m sure we’ll be back at Bass Pro Shops again for your Santa picture next year.

 

Love,

Daddy

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Happiness Is A By-Product, Not A Destination

December 16, 2012 at 4:17 pm , by 

2 years.

Dear Jack,

In the capitalist nation we live in, with its nearly inseparable culture, we have this habit of always finding a new level of happiness, only after we have reached the goal we had been aiming for up until that point.

Just like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory explains, happiness will always elude us as long as we chase it.

However, if we can find a way to be content with what we already have, then happiness becomes a by-product of the integrity of that lifestyle.

Yet at the same time I recognize my personal need for a materialistic goal to inspire me to work harder. Strangely, mine is a Jeep Wrangler.

Actually, you and I both have a bizarre infatuation with Jeep Wranglers.

It all started several months back when Jeep Wranglers became one of the first vehicles you could identify by name. Despite being completely content with my Honda Element that I drive you around in, I had never really noticed how, at least here in Nashville, it appears that for every 10 vehicles on the road, one of of them is a Jeep Wrangler.

Yesterday at Target I helped you, or maybe I should say you helped me, try to find a 97 cent Hot Wheels or Matchbox model of the white Jeep Wrangler with a soft top we both fantasize about the most.

(Maybe it’s because somehow they remind me of Imperial Walkers from The Empire Strikes Back?)

Turns out it was a bust. Jeep Wranglers, like fire engine trucks, are not easily obtainable in small die cast form.

After Mommy heard about us catching a case of “Jeep Fever,” now she’s on board too. It could be something as subliminal  as a Jeep Wrangler most aligning with the culture of our family’s lifestyle: simple and classic, yet low-maintenance, rugged, and even a bit quirky.

So as your dad, I’m caught between the realization that happiness is a by-product of being content with the simple, yet privileged life we already lead as a middle class American family, and the fact that I am motivated by money.

As I spend 40 hours a week working my real job as an Employee Relations Specialist, then 12 hours writing material for The Dadabase, then on top of that, studying at least 5 hours preparing for my HR certification, it helps knowing that all this work is going towards growing my career opportunities…for our family.

Sure, it’s a paradox. All that really matters is spending time with you and Mommy, yet most of my time I have to spend working.

That’s why when the three of us are all awake, I make sure the time we spend is quality time.

Of all the life lessons I will be teaching you, perhaps the truth that “happiness can’t be chased” is one of the hardest for me to consistently teach by example.

But I can’t show you that we’re already happy with what we have now, I’ll definitely never be able to show you if we ever get more than we have now.

 

Love,

Daddy

 

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Starfish Gives Birth To Dog, According To 2 Year-Old Marine Biologist

December 12, 2012 at 11:01 pm , by 

2 years.

Dear Jack,

You know who Santa is now; not because Mommy and I have told you about him, but basically because of all the inflatable yard decorations you see on the way home from daycare everyday.

I have a feeling you won’t ever need me to fill in all the magical details about Santa flying through the air in a gravity-defying sleigh, led by a red-nosed reindeer.

Something that really fascinates me about you is how you know the difference between reality and science fiction, at only 2 years old.

Not only do you have bizarre Santa stories surrounding you, but you also have your Thomas the Train TV shows that you watch; accompanied by the matching toys.

That leads you to further use your imagination to make up weird story lines for your playtime. Even in the car yesterday, out of nowhere, you proclaimed:

“Santa crashed into the train… and the birds.”

You’re good at making up grandiose stories involving characters you’re familiar with.

Observing your bath time is always a wonderfully absurd theatrical production. That is why I love being your bath director when Mommy isn’t able to do it.

Your favorite episode is when the purple starfish bath toy speaks to her daughter; a Collie named Charlie.

“It’s Charlie’s Mommy,” you squeak out in a falsetto voice.

Then you walk Charlie closer to listen to his mother, the starfish. From there, it’s pretty much high-pitched Gibberish involving the Starfish mother telling Charlie to get ready for school… I think.

Seriously, how do you separate science fiction from reality?

As hilarious as you are when you play, you still can quickly convert to being more serious; randomly updating me with realistic tidbits:

“Daddy wears the fluffy jacket.”

“I like chocolate for dinner.”

“I stink… I poop.”

Switching back from the world of your imagination to the world of your perception of actual reality is something you do so flawlessly.

I think it’s safe to say you’re going to be a lot like me: You keep your head in the clouds, but you stand on solid ground.

 

Love,

Daddy

 

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Warning: Security Blankets May Lead To Living Room Forts

December 4, 2012 at 11:46 pm , by 

2 years.

Dear Jack,

It seems like only yesterday, though it was actually 4 months ago, that you were obsessed with a security blanket you named Mimi.

Well, I haven’t heard you say “her” name in a while, but Mimi is still just as important in your life:

You are now entering the initial stages of building forts in the living room.

Today on the drive to daycare, I heard sneaky giggling in the backseat. You had convinced Mommy to let you take your blanket with you, even though it was strangely in the upper 70′s on this rainy December day.

I turned around to see the real-life equivalent of a ghost from Pac-Man. You had pulled the blanket completely over you, hoping I would notice you myself before your own laughing found you out.

“Jack’s house!” I proclaimed.

That’s right, it’s all about the house that Jack built.

Whether you’re hiding underneath your high chair, covering yourself under couch pillows, or your personal favorite, hiding beneath a blanket, your newest current hobby is making “Jack’s house.”

You’re in luck right now because we still have the blow-up mattress in the middle of the living room floor from your Auntie Erin’s visit, which provides the perfect bouncy floor for an appropriate house for a 2-year-old, as you randomly snack on a piece of wheat bread and roll around your toy monster truck.

Before long, you will realize you can prop up your blanket on your toy basketball goal or chairs, making for the perfect fort in the living room.

But I don’t want to rush you. For now, it’s fun to watch you prop up your blanket tent like it’s a toy; which it apparently is right now.

As your dad, it’s cool to be able to see you develop your adventure-making skills.

It’s almost ironic that carrying around a security blanket would be a gateway activity to building a fort in the living room.

You’re progressing from insecurity to security and the way you use a blanket is the evidence.

 

Love,

Daddy