Storytelling

Leave a comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

Business In The Front Seat, Party In The Back Seat

January 2, 2013 at 11:45 pm , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

When our family is travelling anywhere, whether it’s a 20 minute drive into the next neighborhood of Nashville or a 2 hour drive across the Tennessee state line, I know my role: I am the civilized chauffeur.

You and Mommy, on the other hand, well, that’s a whole different story.

While I’m in my own peaceful world in the driver’s seat, semi-sedated in a serene trance thanks to the likes of Fountain of Wayne’s Hackensack, there’s a party going on in the back.

There you are, with your black sunglasses with skulls, in the midst of doing a photo shoot for the linear notes of your next rock album.

As for Mommy, she’s only encouraging the total Gangnam style, complete with good times and tomfoolery.

I learn so much of what really goes on in our family by looking through the pictures on the camera, days after the pictures are taken.

It’s rare that Mommy drives while I’m in the backseat with you; the main reason being I want to give Mommy a chance to have fun with you and not worry about having to concentrate on something serious.

Obviously, it works- as you can see in this picture which she is not aware I am making public.

I’ve never thought about it until now, but it’s usually the other way around.

Usually it’s me chasing you around the house like I’m a rabies-infected jaguar while Mommy is busy doing the important stuff, like cooking dinner.

But when it comes to the family drive, I’m the serious one and Mommy is the one who gets to tickle and tease you.

I suppose, by default, Mommy and I have learned to take turns when it comes to who is playing the business role and who is hosting the party with you.

Seldom are the times where we all three get to all be loud goofballs together, or just as important, when we all three get to chill out on the couch watchingMater’s Tall Tales; which is your new favorite obsession on Netflix.

Just like the importance of budgeting our money, it’s very important that we budget quality time together as a family.

Mommy and I value our time with you: We are aware of all the cliches that “they grow up too fast.”

With that in my mind, we as your 31 year-old parents regularly remind ourselves the importance of not acting like grown-ups with you, all the time.

We like pretending to be a kid, like you. It’s a good perspective.

 

Love,

Daddy

 

 

1 Comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

5 Impractical Ways To Save Your Family Money In 2013

January 1, 2013 at 1:17 am , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

From first glance, we look like apretty normal American family. If people only knew…

As for this time around, I would like to focus on 5 impractical ways that our family saves money…

I’ve heard it said that Generation Y parents are predicted to become much like the penny-pinching generation who was our age during the Great Depression.

Well, I believe it. Here’s the how and the why.

These are 5 impractical ways we as a family save money:

1. We don’t pay for cable or satellite TV. Instead, we pay $7.99 a month for the Netflix streaming plan. We have unlimited access all the shows you love, like Thomas & Friends and Sesame Street; for Mommy and me, there’s Lost and The Office. That’s not even mentioning all the movies that are available.

2. We don’t pay for Internet on our phones. Since we’re already paying for wireless Internet for our house and because our jobs don’t directly depend on it, it’s difficult for us to justify paying even more for Internet so we can play Angry Birds on our phones while we’re bored. Because honestly, as your parents, we never have time to be bored. I wouldn’t mind that, though.

3. We hardly ever go out to eat. By hardly ever, I mean, on a bad month, about twice. While the documentaryFood Inc. conveys a message that a family of 4 can eat for less on McDonald’s Dollar Menu, that’s not accounting for the fact there won’t be leftovers the next day. Shunning restaurants saves money.

4. We don’t update our electronics or possessions that cost over $100. My iPod has a cracked screen and its charge only lasts about 2 days. The screen of our 2006 model TV is only 30 inches wide, yet the length of it is nearly just as long. Oh yeah, and it’s been struck by lightning, so parts of the screen are discolored. Mommy and I have had the same cell phones for well over 2 years, but because Verizon recently started charging an “activation fee” for their “free phones,” we decided to just keep our old ones. In other words, if it ain’t dead, don’t fix it.

5. We live by a strict weekly budget, on an Excel spreadsheet. Like financial guru Dave Ramsey says, “If you don’t tell your money where to go, it will tell you where to go.” It’s impractical to account for every dollar spent, but knowing that we are projected to reach “debt free” status in 2013, I don’t mind living an impractical lifestyle.

So what if we shun credit cards and cable TV like the plague, or perhaps more relevantly, like high-fructose corn syrup? Mommy and I are obsessed with telling our money where to go.

We’ve learned the hard way. Just a couple of years ago, our money was telling us where to go. As for 2013, Lord willing, we will finally be free of debt.

Somehow, becoming debt-free is one of the most practical things I can think of.

 

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on People, Storytelling

Mazel Tov On My 2 Year-Old’s Bed Mitzvah!

December 30, 2012 at 9:18 pm , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

I now wrap up the year 2012 with a noteworthy milestone in your life: Mommy and I just tucked you in for the night, for the first time… in your “big boy bed.”

No more crib for you. You have graduated into the day bed version.

Look how proud you are in this picture!

At long last, you are now sleeping like a 2 year-old, not a baby.

Son, tonight was your Bed Mitzvah.

This change in your life also is aligned with your parents’ more deliberate focus on helping your become potty trained.

Yesterday at T. J. Maxx, Mommy and I bought you 3 metal Chuggington trains. We explained to you that for the next 3 times you go pee-pee on the potty, you get to open a new train. (Sure, it’s an unavoidable pun: We’re potty training you.)

As an added bonus, you have recently received a surprisingly relevant gift last week that helps you sleep easier for your naps… a Thor indoor play tent.

It’s random because you have no idea who Thor is yet. You call it your tunnel.

“I can sleep in my tunnel?”

While attempting to get you to go to sleep for your afternoon naps on the weekends has always been a struggle, this new “tunnel” of yours is a pretty cool thing.

It has a side door which I pop my head in to read you a quick story. You never seem to mind when I slip out the door afterwords. Two hours later, you wake up and you’re ready to play again.

I just wish we would have known the wonders of a tunnel sooner!

So between your new “big boy bed” and your “tunnel,” I’d say things are pretty exciting in the world of sleeping, for you.

To this day, whenever Mommy and I ask you if you’re ready to go to sleep, as we can clearly see you are, you’ve never said yes.

Here’s to my wishful thinking that might change now that you’ve had your Bed Mitzvah…

I know, it’s asking too much.

 

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

Teaching An American 2 Year-Old To Kiss Like A European

December 27, 2012 at 9:14 pm , by 

2 years, 1 months.

Dear Jack,

Every night before we put you to bed, you know you have to kiss Mommy and me goodnight.

Right now, we’re helping you figure out how to do it just right.

“No tongue, Jack!”

That’s what Mommy has to remind you because you have this habit; instead of kissing us, you lick us, like you’re a puppy.

The goal is for us to kiss each other on the cheek, not the lips.

But several times now, you have leaned in to me with your mouth open like you’re about to take a big bite out of an ice cream cone.

Please know how hard it is for me not to laugh when you do that, but I know I can’t afford to as I’m trying to get you into sleep mode.

There’s this concept in my head of you and I kissing each other on the cheek as we say hello and goodbye, even as we get older.

I know that may sound a little bizarre at first; mainly because it is. Because we’re Americans living in America.

If we were in Italy or France, it probably wouldn’t be that weird.

Just picture us, 20 years from now, wearing cabbie hats as we greet each other with open arms and a classic European father-son kiss on the cheek.

(Just saying that out loud seems so un-American; like the kind of thing that Paul Rudd would do unsuccessfully in a Judd Apatow movie.)

But that’s how I imagine us; being totally comfortable with being physically affectionate.

Granted, it’s to be done with discretion; not the kind of thing to be executed in front of your friends when you’re in the 6th grade. After all, I’m no helicopter parent nor do I want to be associated with the term “attachment parenting.’

Aside from what I see as unfavorable extremes, I just want it to be normal for a dad to kiss his son hello, goodbye, and goodnight; even if it comes across as European.

 

Love,

Daddy

 

Leave a comment Posted on parenting, Storytelling

How Is The “3-Year-Old Look” Different Than The 2-Year-Old’s?

December 19, 2012 at 12:11 am , by 

2 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

Mommy and I couldn’t help but notice the consistency between random strangers’ comments when they see you in public.

They either A) comment by saying, “Wow, you’re a big boy!” or B) they assume you’re 3 years old instead of 2.

I’m intrigued by this phenomenon. Why do strangers, and even my co-workers who see your pictures hanging up at my cubicle, assume you’re a year older than you actually are?

It might be assumed because of your size, but here’s the thing, kid: You couldn’t be a more average-sized 2-year-old boy. The doctor confirmed at your 2 year check-up that you are in the 50th percentile for height and weight.

As I’ve explained before, you’ll grow to be about 5’8”, which is double your current height of 34 inches.

Could it be that you “act older?” Maybe, but your vocabulary doesn’t seem to reflect that of a 3-year-old.

Maybe it’s that these random strangers don’t have daily access to a 2-year-old boy, to know what’s normal. Perhaps it’s been a decade or so since they were exposed to the accurate size and behavior of a 2-year-old.

This may seem like the strangest reason, but maybe it’s simply your hair that makes you seem older.

Mommy and I have been keeping your hair cut short on the sides and back; ever since you were just a few months old. We decided the default chili bowl haircut just wasn’t for you.

So whatever it it is, possibly even a combination of all the explanations, I have a feeling you will continue looking like you’re a year older than you are. Granted, your skin is as wrinkle-free as Ryan Seacrest’s, but you just have the look of a 3-year-old; whatever that is.

I’m really curious to know: How can you really tell a 2-year-old from a 3-year-old if they’re not standing right next to each other? Observe your 3-year-old friends at daycare tomorrow and let me know!

 

Love,

Daddy