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Leave a comment Posted on April 9, 2015April 9, 2015 parenting, People, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Our Easter 2015 Egg Hunt/Visit To Hawkins Spring Park

4 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

Our Easter tradition every year since you have been born has been to take you to the big egg hunt that Nonna and Papa’s church has at someone’s (very large) house.

I gave you several coaching sessions before the hunt; sharing with you the effective strategy of immediately running to the far corner of the field, where no one else bothers to go. I also reminded you not to stop to open the eggs; just to throw as many as you could into your basket, then worry about opening them after the hunt is over.

Without surprise, you easily obtained more eggs than the other kids by doing so. While you are still not quite inspired to kick the soccer ball during your games, egg hunting is a sport you can get excited about!

What’s funny is that you’ve yet to really look through the eggs, even now. You were happiest about bringing home some of my old stuffed animals from when I was your age; not what was inside the eggs.

Later on, we all went to Hawkins Spring Park there in Fort Payne, Alabama; my hometown. Where I grew up, there were several parks around our house, yet I never really went to this one.

Had I known about it back when I was 4, this might have been my favorite park; especially since a giant creek runs through it.

Of course, I didn’t let you and your cousin Calla have all the fun on the playground. They happened to have an adult playground where grown men like me and your Uncle Andrew could test our agility and strength. We were victorious… mostly.

Oh, and we rescued an old abandoned tire from the creek. We helped the environment!

A common question I have been getting this week is, “Did you have a good Easter?”

I did. We all did. We have nothing but good, fun, quality time as a family… while visiting family.

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on March 26, 2015 parenting, People, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Getting Ready For Your First Soccer Game

4 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

This Monday you had your first soccer practice… and this weekend you will have your very first soccer game! Pretty exciting stuff these days.

We bought you a soccer ball and have been practicing in the driveway. From these pictures your teacher sent me, it looks like you’re getting some good practice there as well.

Here’s what your teacher had to say about what you’ve been doing at school this week:

We had lots of fun this week outside!

Jack and his friends went on a pirate adventure around the playground. He rowed his boat over to Skull Rock Island, climbed through his way through Vine Snake Jungle, then snuck up on the sleeping dragon to steal the magical fire rubies! (His face running away from the dragon was priceless!)

Today we had a lot of different activities!

He worked with friends to fold pieces of paper and build a tower. He was extremely proud of himself he built it up so high!

His latest craze, is to write his name with “scary letters” They’re beyond amazing! He has such an artistic talent!

And last but not least (We were busy today weren’t we!) we flew kites!

We took out our parrot kite this morning. He asked to hold the kite and he tried to hold on very tight. Ultimately, the wind was a bit too strong and took the kite across the playground, across the street, and into the corn field! Thankfully Ms. Lara came to the rescue and retrieved our kite!

This afternoon, everyone wanted to make their own kites and flew them outside!

We had an absolute blast!

When I read this kind of stuff about you, it makes me so proud. I love your creativity. You are a bright young boy and I’m so glad your mine.

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on March 19, 2015 People, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Your New Pet Spider At School

4 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

When Mommy and I got married nearly 7 years ago, I quickly learned that one of my roles was to kill the spiders in our home.

Of course, I knew it’s not wise to kill every spider. After all, certain spiders like granddaddy longlegs are there to prey on the other spiders that may actually be harmful to people.

So I had to teach Mommy that you definitely want to keep a few spiders in the corners of the house; like having a cat in the barn to catch the mice.

Therefore, it is not in my nature to kill a spider simply because it’s a spider. Unless it’s poisonous and/or potentially harmful to people, the worst I’ll do to a spider is move it outside.

As my son, you are the same way. Your teacher at Rainbow Child Care Center, Ms. Aimee, sent me this note:

“Last week Jack found a very tiny spider. Instead of smashing it (like what a typical child would do) he wanted to save it from being stepped on. I helped him move the spider to a safe place by the fence where it could be free in the grass.

Jack then decided that our new spider friend needed a house! So he searched the playground for items he could use to build the house. He found rocks, mulch, and grass (so he could eat in the comfort of his home).

The next week he made sure to check the spider’s home every day, to see if it came back. We found a spider web today and came to the conclusion that he must have been playing on the play equipment!”

Your teacher also sent me some pictures of you at school from this past week, ranging from “Dr. Seuss Day” to St. Patrick’s Day.

Speaking of St. Patrick’s Day, I’ve got some pictures of my own to share, so be on the look-out for that…

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on March 12, 2015 parenting, People, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Why Your Teacher At Rainbow Child Care Center Is Awesome

4 years, 3 months.

Dear Jack,

You have been attending your new school, Rainbow Child Care Center, for a month now. I’m assuming it’s been pretty obvious in my recent letters how happy our family is with you attending there.

Today, I want take a moment to “feature your teacher”, Ms. Aimee.

She is truly exceptional. She is the ideal teacher I could hope for, working at the ideal school I could hope for you to attend.

Last week she taught you to use a hammer, a real hammer, to build a tiny house, which is currently being displayed in our wine cabinet.

Consider how atypical it is that a 4 year-old gets to build something out of wood, using a real hammer, at his preschool. That is so cool you get to do that.

And this week, Ms. Aimee started teaching you and your friends how to use a sewing machine. I love the super serious look on your face in this picture as you were working on your patch.

This is a quick note she sent me about it:

Here are photos of Jack using a sewing machine for the first time! He observed a couple friends do it first, then, became very eager to try. After learning some of the rules (ie: always watch your fingers) he was a sewing pro! He picked out his fabric, and slowly guided it through the sewing machine. After he was done, he loved showing his project off!

These examples demonstrate not only how much creative control that Rainbow Child Care Center gives their teachers, which I extremely appreciate, but also how creative and talented your teacher is.

To me, that’s all the “Montessori” revealing itself.

Plus, it’s pretty revolutionary and unique that Rainbow Child Care Centers have a kids gym in them, so you are able to physically play- despite the weather.

I can see that every day at your school, you are being creatively and intellectually challenged.

Ms. Aimee inspires you. Because of her, you are now fascinated with pet reptiles and amphibians, since Ms. Aimee has 4 of them in your classroom. I imagine not many 4 year-old boys get to have 4 pet reptiles and amphibians in their preschool classroom as class pets!

It’s no surprise that we bought tickets for Repticon for the weekend after next. I can’t wait to see how much you’re going to enjoy it.

Mommy and I even bought you a gecko stuffed animal as part of your upcoming Easter basket.

Oh, and your class recently won a pajama party due to good behavior. It was a big deal to you!

I obviously recommend Rainbow Child Care Center to any parent who is considering enrolling their child there.

It is a perfect fit for our family and lifestyle.

Love,

Daddy

2 Comments Posted on March 5, 2015 People, Recaps, Uncategorized, Writing

What I’ve Learned From Not Checking My Facebook Homepage For 30 Days

I’m not against Facebook. I think it’s a great thing. However, a month ago I had to go 4 days without any Internet (and therefore, Facebook) as we were moving into our new house.

When I finally did check Facebook, I realized that life went out without me… and I didn’t feel like I missed anything.

Prepare for the Hallmark movie cliché, but it showed me that my family right in front of me is all that really matters.

So from there I decided to stop checking my Facebook homepage for the following month; that time period ended today. However, the 30 day self-assigned pledge has inspired me to continue staying off my Facebook homepage.

I no longer am exposed to snarky, annoying, self-serving comments; including being tempted to post my own. My exposure to negativity has decreased by 100%; though I admit there’s probably not a true way to measure the validity of that percentage decrease.

But I feel it. I feel great. My quality of life has improved since nixing my Facebook homepage.

There is something called “FOMO” (fear of missing out) that is apparently increased by social media. Apparently, I have less subconscious anxiety in my life because I have less exposure to the news I’m apparently missing out on.

Can you gossip about yourself? If so, Facebook is the platform. I’d rather not tune in to people gossiping about themselves, about the the news, about groups of people, or whatever else can fall into that category.

I should point out too that I cancelled the ability for my phone to receive any messages based on Facebook activity too.

Another part of my pledge was to only start publishing new posts here on Family Friendly Daddy Blog on Thursdays, which helps me focus on living “real life” with my family and not being distracted by daily focusing on publishing new stuff.

That decision has proven successful for me. I am happier now that I am only posting new material one night per week, all at once. Therefore, that’s really the only time I’m needing to log in to Facebook anywhere.

I don’t feel socially disconnected since locking myself out of my Facebook homepage.

Friday begins the National Day of Unplugging (March 6-7, 2015). Of course, I’m taking the pledge. It’s pretty much my life now anyway.

It’s not right for everybody, but it’s definitely right for me. In the past month I have learned that my personal happiness can truly be measured by my lack of exposure to my Facebook homepage and having to feel pressured to daily post new stuff on my blog.

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