Storytelling

Leave a comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

Dads Are Weird Car Passengers

June 11, 2014 at 8:30 pm , by

3 years, 6 months.

Dear Jack,

Yesterday on my business road trip from Franklin, TN to Murray, KY, I was a passenger for a total round trip of over 5 hours.

Seriously, I was in culture shock.

Please understand why…

Since you were born 3 and a half years ago, I have been driving you to and from school every single day. On the weekends, I drive the both you and Mommy around.

For all our road trips, to Louisville, KY, to Atlanta, GA, to my hometown in Fort Payne, AL, it’s me that’s driving; I’m never the passenger.

It’s even rare for me to be driving in a car by myself. There’s always someone for me to entertain and/or take care of.

So for me to be a passenger for over 5 hours yesterday, just sitting in the back seat… man, it was weird!

I read for a little while, I texted Mommy, I texted my friend Jarred, I took a little nap; but ultimately, the experience somehow made me feel lazy- like I was evading my role.

It’s just that I am wired to be the driver, the navigator, the one who is ultimately in charge.

I am wired for responsibility. But as a passenger in a vehicle, it felt sort of wrong; like how in my letter to you yesterday I explained that it felt wrong not seeing you all day long.

This morning, I drove you to school as usual. It was as if everything were back to normal.

I answered your questions about why dark clouds mean it’s probably going to rain and explained how the sun dries up the rain once the sun comes back out again.

As I drove you, I taught you. That’s what I do. That’s part of the dynamics of our father-son relationship.

What I don’t do is just watch the telephone poles go by as a classic 90s hit comes on the radio.

We can drive it home, with one headlight…

 

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

Raising Jumpin’ Jack Flash, The BASE Jumper

June 10, 2014 at 10:34 pm , by

3 years, 6 months.

Dear Jack,

Ever since you took that gymnastics class a few months ago, you’ve made a habit of looking for things to jump off of, like a BASE jumper.

That’s right- you learned to jump, as funny has that sounds. And now, it’s something you take very seriously.

When we stayed at the hotel for the Wizard World Atlanta Comic Con recently, you were very excited to see there was an ottoman in front of the sofa.

Needless to say, you knew just what to do…

When you weren’t using Hungry Hungry Hippos as a toy, you were being Jumpin’ Jack Flash!

A recent new tradition you and I started is that every night when it’s time for you to go upstairs with Mommy to take your bath, I take a break from doing the dishes and give you a piggy back ride to your room.

Then, I throw you onto your bed.

For the next couple of minutes after that, you jump off the bed onto the carpet, only to have me throw you back on the bed.

Your face slams into the bedspread and pillows. You love it.

Convenient for the sake of you continuing this roughhousing with me, is the fact you have never gotten hurt doing any of this.

This whole time, I’ve never had to put up a baby gate on our stairway. You have always had a reverent fear of the stairs- which is part of why you like to ride on my shoulders while going up them.

But despite your new love of BASE jumping, you have no desire to try jumping down the stairs.

You know that if you get hurt jumping, or while I throw you on the bed, that you probably wouldn’t get to have this much fun.

Smart kid, you are.

 

 

Love,

Daddy

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Boys Can Make Toys Out Of Anything, Like A Plastic Potato

June 7, 2014 at 10:53 pm , by

3 years, 6 months.

Dear Jack,

Almost exactly 3 years ago on June 21st, 2011, back when you were just 7 months old, I wrote aDadabase entry called “The Magically Entertaining Wooden Spoon.”

It talked about your ability to make a toy out of anything.

You still have that skill, by the way.

But these days, you also find a way to make a chore out of the new toy you discover.

Two weekends ago while at your cousin Calla’s 3rd birthday party, you somehow found a plastic potato container.

Apparently, Nonna (my mom) got it kind of as a joke for your Auntie Dana (my sister) to pack snacks for her lunch, back when she was in high school.

One of the things I didn’t mention in my most recent letter to you about the birthday partyis that for the first hour or so, you were carrying around that plastic potato with his googly eyes.

You used the potato as a place to store the rocks you found in the backyard.

I think it would be safe to use the words “proud” and “protective” to describe the way you carried that thing around.

Of course, you did share it without whoever wanted to see it for a minute. But you kept a close eye on it, as you can see in this picture.

So in closing, you have knack for finding a way to make a toy out of just about any random thing you find. Then, your version of playing with that new toy comes across more like work; or at least a game.

Honestly, you’re a pretty low maintenance kind of kid.

Maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll upgrade you: I could just give you a real potato and say, “Here ya go, Son. Have fun.”

The thing is, I’m sure you would.

 

Love,

Daddy

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My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic Birthday Party For A 3 Year-Old

June 7, 2014 at 10:14 pm , by

3 years, 6 months.

Dear Jack,

For Memorial Day weekend, we took a road trip in the Sante Fe SUV to go to your cousin Calla’s 3rd birthday party. I should point out, that by default, you had to become a Brony for the afternoon, since you were surrounded by two other 3 year-olds, who both happened to be girls.

One of them, was of course, your cousin Calla.

The other was, well, only your best friend in the whole world: Sophie!

She moved away back in February, but it turns out, where your cousin Calla lives in basically the half-way point between where Sophie moved and where we live.

As expected, you and Sophie picked up right where you left off.

Needless to say the three of you had a great time. It should be a given that when in the presence of our family, things will be fun, random, and unique.

And so they were.

The party got started off right with an inflatable castle,  a rocking horse, and a playground underneath the Alabama pines.

After the three of you burned off some energy in the fresh air, one thing led to another, and the next event became a visit down into the storm shelter.

Yeah, because that’s normal…

It is with us, at least. After I closed the hatch, I stood above you all, on ground level, pretending to be the “Big Bad Wolf,” howling through the ventilation pipe.

You guys cheerfully stayed down there much longer than I would have expected.

After all, with the exception of the little bit of light shining down from where I was standing, it was otherwise completely dark in the storm shelter.

I suppose there’s something about hanging out in a storm shelter that makes you crave munchies, because up next, the three of you had vegan vanilla cupcakes at the Friendship Is Magic table.

Meanwhile, we adults dined on vegan French toast and vegan quiche as well.

Because if things weren’t quirky enough with our family, you better believe that our plant-based lifestyle extends beyond just you, me, and Mommy…

What comes next after the snacks and birthday cake? The presents!

We got Calla a tutu, while “Uncle Owl,” who is my Uncle Al (pictured in the storm shelter picture, flashing a peace sign) presented Calla with the gift that earned the title “Most/Least Creatively Wrapped Gift.”

Throughout my whole life, he has always been known for buying us nice gifts, and a lot of them… and wrapping them in newspaper.

This time, though, he decided to mix things up.

He “wrapped” Calla’s largest gift by placing it in a large black garbage bag.

Calla didn’t seem to notice the humor, she was just so happy to be getting a kid-sized Disney Princesses sofa.

I think you missed the “unwrapping” of the sofa, because Sophie’s daddy was taking turns bouncing you and Sophie on the giant exercise ball in the living room.

Just imagine had we known what all was going to happen at Calla’s party in advance.

Imagine if the invitation would have arrived in the mail, proclaiming this:

“Come join us to celebrate Calla’s 3rd birthday!

We will be playing outside in a jumpy castle, riding a rocking horse, hanging out in a storm shelter, bouncing on a yoga ball, and we will try to figure out what’s underneath that garbage bag.”

Yep, just another all-American birthday party for a 3 year-old girl.

All the standard stuff you’d expect to see… in our family, at least.

 

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on Nostalgia, parenting, Storytelling

A Front Row Seat For The Train Show (1000th Dadabase Post)

June 7, 2014 at 8:13 am , by

3 years, 6 months.

Dear Jack,

I always wondered where my 1000th Dadabase post would land.

Well, this is it. Completely random and unplanned, this one is about your love for trains and how you got a “front row seat” for a real train.

Our family drove to my hometown of Fort Payne, AL for Memorial Day for your cousin Calla’s 3rd birthday.

While there, you asked if we could all go the park.

As Nonna pushed you on the swing and Papa pushed Calla, we heard a that famous thunderous roar, as the train whistle tooted.

“Jack! The train is coming! Let’s go see it right now! Come on, run!” I announced.

Needless to say, we might as well have been right there in the presence of Elmo; because you were in such awe of the majesty of this Norfolk Southern train passing in front of you as Nonna held you.

I can only imagine what was going through your head.

Until that day, you had never seen a moving train so close up; only from our car, but even then, it wasn’t nearly as close as this train was.

You have spentcountlesshours over the past couple of years meticulously crawling around the carpet, pushing your Thomas the Train and Chuggington trains on their plastic tracks.

I have watched you day after day as you have carefully lined up each train so perfectly; matching up “line leader’s” train with the appropriately color matching coal cart.

This is something you’ve always been very serious about. So to see the real thing, it was more than a big deal to you.

I’m glad I was able to witness you seeing your first real live train.

While it may not be some epic letter to you in this 1000th Dadabase post, I think it does properly symbolize what’s important to you as a 3 year-old boy: family and trains.

 

Love,

Daddy