Dear Jack: Spring Break 2017 at Nonna and Papa’s House

6 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack,

For your first official spring break, you spent the week in Alabama with Nonna and Papa. The whole time, Nonna was sending me pictures and texts from her phone, to keep Mommy and me updated on what you were doing that day. Of course, we also called you every night, as well.

This made your 3rd time to stay with Nonna and Papa for a week. And you made yourself right at home. Here are the texts Nonna sent me…

Jack making his strawberry muffins.

Jack wants to know if these are go-bots or transformers. It’s cooking Transformers.

Time to wash Nonna’s car!

Boys just gotta have fun! (in puddle)

Darla has had so much fun with Jack this week. They are just like puppies!

Two peas in a pod.

Tonight’s Masterpiece (dragon drawing)

Lunch with Calla.

Jack cleaning.

Something really special that you were able to do was to visit your cousin Calla at her school; as she is also in Kindergarten. You met her for lunch, then got a brief tour of the school.

You also got to hang out with Darla, her sister, at Aunt Dana’s house.

I see that you apparently enjoyed doing some chores while you were at Nonna and Papa’s house; though I suppose there’s a certain amount of messiness that comes along with those chores.

You definitely have an independence about you that I didn’t gain until I was a teenager. That actually means me feel proud, as your parent. I want to know that you’re not afraid to live outside your comfort zone and routine.

I would have never been okay, as a Kindergartner, with spending an entire week at my grandparents’ house, nearly 3 hours away.

But what can I say, you’re one adventurous boy!

Love,

Daddy

Been a Vegan 4 Years Now and Nobody’s Impressed (How American Masculinity is Associated with Eating Red Meat and Pork)

No one will read this blog post. It will not show up at the top of anyone’s Facebook feed, like the way pictures of my adorable 11 month-old daughter do. Because ultimately, this blog is irrelevant to most people.

My dedication to the plant-based life is unanimously met with the sound of crickets chirping; especially since I have zero desire to try to convince anyone else they should become a vegan.

To go 4 years without eating any meat, eggs, or dairy products is nearly un-American, not to mention, un-masculine.

Our American culture subconsciously associates masculinity with eating meat: In particular, red meat and pork.

So for a man to deny himself of that form of protein… it isn’t considered noble, by most. Instead, it is met with confusion, at best.

To be exact, I haven’t consumed pork (which includes hot dogs, BBQ, and bacon) or shellfish (shrimp, scallops, lobster) since Thanksgiving 2008; over 8 years now. Nor have I eaten any meat (including fish) since December 2011.

I didn’t go vegan all at once; I accidentally stumbled into it after realizing my eczema (dyshidrosis), constant sinus pressure and sinus infections, and pet allergies disappeared once I cut out all animal products.

A couple of months ago I declared myself as the manliest vegan on the Internet. Granted, it was a tongue-in-cheek proclamation. Yet still, no one denied it.

Because really, A) no cares about the lifestyles of vegans except for vegans themselves and B) there are so few masculine vegans on the Internet to care enough to rebuttal my claim.

But in the rare event anyone is actually reading this, take a look at me.

It is very obvious I am not lacking protein. It is very obvious I look healthy.

And that’s with me consuming no meat, eggs, or dairy for 4 years now.

I have no health issues, nor do I require any medications or supplements.

My protein and “good fats” intake (which contains 0% of my daily cholesterol) comes from vegetables, fruits, grains, beans, nuts, and seeds.

As for Vitamin B12, that is derived from the mushrooms, seaweed, and Kombucha I regularly consume.

Plus, my daughter is turning 1 year old this month. So obviously, my plant-based lifestyle didn’t interfere with my ability to father children.

I am an image of a healthy man. I just happen to not consume any animal products.

Yet our society continues to believe that eating red meat and pork is masculine. Our society continues to question whether vegans get enough protein.

Well, at least you know about one exception to the rule now.

But then again, no one will actually read this.

I am Being Featured on CreditDonkey’s Best Dad Blogs 2017: Top Parenting Experts

This morning I was informed that my blog, Family Friendly Daddy Blog, was chosen as one of the Top 40 “Best Dad Blogs”, by CreditDonkey. It gives me great confirmation to know that my work as a daddy blogger stands out in the crowd, as it was noted:

“Family Friendly Daddy Blog is a site featuring reviews of everything from cars to toys, along with plenty of musings on parenting and the vegan lifestyle.”

As I scrolled down the list of fellow daddy bloggers on the list, I immediately realized that I personally know some of these guys, actually:

Back when I was the daddy blogger for Parents.com, General Motors flew me up to Detroit in October 2011 to promote their Traverse, I met HighTechDad.

Larry Mihalko during the Chevrolet Traverse Quality event during the Chevrolet Centennial media event Wednesday, October 19, 2011 at the General Motors Milford Proving Grounds in Milford, Michigan. (Photo by Jeffrey Sauger for Chevrolet)

But I especially hit it off with 8BitDad, Zach Rosenberg, while I was there. I remember him telling me that his own dad is a character actor, in Los Angeles. This whole time, 8BitDad and I have been following each other on Twitter. I hope I get to hang out with him again in person someday.

And I met Gay NYC Dad in October 2014 when I was invited by Toyota for their “Family Reunion” at Ponte Vedra Inn & Club in Pompano Beach, Florida; featuring the updated Sienna, Camry, and Yaris. I remember he and I had a fun conversation about how he grew up on a kosher diet, being Jewish, whereas I started about my journey of veganism when I switched to kosher (no pork, shellfish, or other bottom feeder animals) back on Thanksgiving 2008.

The fact that I made it to this list reminds me that while I may not be the most popular daddy blogger out there, I am good enough at what I do to make the cut; to be considered one of the most relevant.

It also shows me I’m doing a decent job on SEO (search engine optimization); meaning I’m able to create and maintain contain that is easy for people to find when they search a relatable topic on Google.

I am very grateful for all of my readers and supporters- and I especially thank CreditDonkey today for choosing me as part of their Top 40 daddy bloggers.

That Moment You See an Old Photo and Remember the More Fun (Yet Less Responsible) Version of Yourself…

Earlier this week I received a Facebook notification that someone had shared a photo of me. I immediately found this odd, since I’m typically not in photos with other people unless it’s with my wife or kids, and it was my camera being used.

Then I looked and saw it:
“A little throwback for your Monday blues…”

Jeffrey A. Smith had shared a photo he had taken of me back in August 2005, from over 11 years ago, for my “moving to Nashville” photo shoot. I was 24 years old at the time. (See left.)

I immediately responded to his comment: “I don’t remember this guy! After nearly 9 years of marriage and raising 2 kids, I am far from the confused guy wandering out of the woods, ha ha!”

There’s something naturally funny about seeing an old photo of yourself, especially when it’s shared in real time like this.

To me, what is so humorous is not the long hair, the backpacker style pullover I bought while I was living in Thailand, or the really baggy jeans.

It’s not even the (angry?) look on my face which possibly seems to indicate I’m preparing to fight for my life in a Hunger Games scenario.

Instead, it’s the obvious reminder that who I was back in 2005 at age 24 is not who I am now in 2017, just weeks away from my 36th birthday.

I have been completely rewired since the day this picture was taken.

Sure, I do have vague memories of that guy in the picture. But that’s not me. I think of him as a guy I used to know back in the 2000s.

I don’t know, maybe I was more of a fun guy back then:

No real responsibilities. No real job. No family to support. Just dreams to pursue.

And now, nearly a dozen years later, I simply can’t relate to that guy in these pictures from that day in August 2005.

I am so grateful for how far I have evolved from that guy, actually. But if it weren’t for that guy, I could have never become who I am today. He had what it took to get me to where I needed to be.

It’s strange to think that people who haven’t been around me since high school, or college, or from when I first moved to Nashville, they knew that guy… not this guy.

I don’t know for sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

But I have to assume that most of us have a similar story. I have a feeling most people can understand how an old photo brings back memories of a former version of ourselves that immediately causes us to laugh- and to be grateful that we have been blessed with enough years to move beyond who we used to be, so that we could become who we are today.

Dear Holly: Spring Training So You Can Learn to Walk, Thanks to the Knock-Off Version of CrossFit with Big Brother and Daddy

11 months.

Dear Holly,

Now that you’re eleven months old, you love exploring your newfound mobility. You’ve mastered the art of crawling, and at this point you’re experimenting with standing.

Good thing you have your brother Jack and me to help push you to the physical limits, in our own knock-off version of Crossfit.

Each morning after Jack gets ready for school, he always asks, “Daddy, can I play with Holly?

He starts you off by helping you ride the scooter, then helps you push the scooter, and then he has you attempt to push the scooter with him on it!

As Jack sees me loading up the car, he knows at point it’s almost time to leave, so he basically plays fetch with you; as he rolls your big pink ball from the living room to the kitchen. You joyfully crawl as hard as you can to go get the ball, before he ultimately gets there before you do and rolls it back to the other room; only for you to happily try to go try to get it again.

Finally, he jumps on the scooter and rushes towards you, pretending he’s about to run straight into you. With a big smile and a girly giggle, you flinch, as he ultimately barely touches the side of you with the scooter.

You love it.

Then when I get home in the evening, Mommy gives you to me as she works on dinner. The first thing I do with you before playing we play with any other toys, is I make you do your push-ups on the counter that separates our kitchen from our dining room.

This is something we just sort of stumbled upon a few weeks ago. I was talking to Mommy one day as she was cutting some vegetables, and you just reached out for the counter, then as if it were something you and I had already discussed, you began doing push-ups on the counter while I hold you.

I think this is your method of Spring Training to help you learn to walk. You are so eager to move up to the next mode of transportation!

Love,

Daddy