3 Comments Posted on parenting, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: We Built the Pullback Race Car at Lowe’s… Twice

5 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack: We Built the Pull Back Car at Lowe’s… Twice

Dear Jack,

Last night as a family we drove to Lowe’s, which we can see from our upstairs windows facing the backyard, to build a free pullback race car; as part of their Build and Grow program.

I was eager to serve as the camera man, since we just got our new Canon PowerShot G7 X as part of my upcoming 35th birthday. Meanwhile, you and Mommy took turns hammering in the nails.

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We were all so busy doing our jobs that no one us happened to see the obvious warning in the instructions that one of the panels had to be facing a certain way.

Needless to say, we didn’t see that part in the instructions until the car was built. Therefore, your racecar didn’t propel forward after you pulled it back, like it was designed to do.

A fellow dad came up to me just then to discreetly explain he had made the same mistake and had to rebuild his.

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Fortunately, the lady kindly gave us another car and so we started over. At least we knew exactly what to do the 2nd time around. After we built it the right way, you had so much fun testing out the race car’s pullback action!

I’m glad that Lowe’s has this program. And it’s really convenient that we live so close.

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We used to take you more often to these events at Lowe’s when you were a toddler. I don’t know how we got out of the habit, especially now that you’re at the perfect age. Perhaps in the process of building and moving into a new house last year, we just sort of forgot.

Oh well, I have a feeling we’ll being going quite regularly now. And I guess we’ll be more careful to follow all the instructions; otherwise we’ll do the craft twice… even though, you didn’t seem to mind that at all.

Love,

Daddy

Dear Jack: We Built the Pull Back Car at Lowe’s… Twice

5 Comments Posted on parenting, People, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

5 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

Dear Jack,

Last weekend you and I got to test out our brand-new camera: a Canon PowerShot G7 X.

We picked up right where we left off from the weekend before, when we followed that creek to the treehouse.

Whereas my new toy was the camera, your new toy was a gift card holder, which is a functioning toy tractor from Tractor Supply Company.

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You made it your mission to run that red tractor through the water and soot in the creek. I served as your camera man.

I love our new camera. The camera I’ve been using for the past 4 and a half years up until this point was the 2011 version of the Canon PowerShot, which was only 12 megapixels.

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

Apparently that’s my favorite brand. I find it very user friendly and absolutely durable. Mommy and I dropped the last one several times and it never damaged the camera at all.

With the upgraded version, we now have 20 megapixels, plus a 1 inch sensor which causes the background to blur; giving the images a more professional look.

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

(Thanks to Best Buy for their educated staff, who were able to enlighten me!)

With your sister Holly scheduled to be born in less than a month, and with you starting Kindergarten this fall, Mommy and I figured it was the right time for a new camera.

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As for our journey in the neighborhood walking park a few neighborhoods away from us, we trekked on far enough to discover a really cool school playground.

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

Now that we’ve been exploring the surrounding neighborhoods for the past couple of weekends, I have a feeling this will be the norm for us; that we will try to squeeze in an exploring journey whenever we can.

While Mommy’s taking care of the baby this summer, I’ll be there to guide you to excitement in the great outdoors.

Love,

Daddy

Dear Jack: Our New Canon PowerShot G7 X Camera

4 Comments Posted on Health, parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Dear Holly: You’re Going to Be a Small Baby; in the 23rd Percentile

36 weeks.

Dear Holly: You’re Going to Be a Small Baby; in the 23rd Percentile

Dear Holly,

This week Mommy and I went to Vanderbilt for another sonogram appointment. We just wanted the assurance of knowing you’re still doing okay in the there. I’ll cut to the chase:

You are. Thank God.

We were informed that everything is great; your heartbeat, your fluids, and your movement. There is no reason for concern. You are simply going to be a small baby.

You currently weigh 5 pounds, 9 ounces; with just about 4 weeks left before you’re born. They told us that if you were in the 10th percentile or lower, then it might be an issue; but instead, you’re in the 23rd.

Knowing that you “have been measuring a couple of weeks behind” for a while now had caused us to worry that something was wrong. It’s good to have some relief on that.

This is the opposite of what we experienced with your brother Jack. It seemed he was always in the 90th percentile. He was a big baby with a big head, which made his birth very difficult for Mommy. Granted, that doesn’t mean he’s a big boy now; he’s average.

They told us this week that in addition to being a small baby, you “don’t have a big head.” I’m happy because that hopefully means an easier labor for Mommy when you are being born.

If I haven’t said it already, Mommy is ready for you to come out. And I’m ready too.

This is the “misery” part of the pregnancy where Mommy just can’t get comfortable to stay asleep or even just sit comfortably. I think it’s funny that her favorite t-shirt to wear at night is the Wonder Woman nighty I got her for Christmas.

Plus, it will be nice having you outside of the womb so we can see for ourselves that you really are doing just fine in there, just like the doctors say.

We’re now less than a month away from your due date. I keep reminding myself that when you’re finally born… we’ll actually have a little baby girl!

I know that part seems kind of obvious, but it’s how my mind works right now.

Love,

Daddy

3 Comments Posted on Nostalgia, parenting, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

5 years, 4 months.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

Dear Jack,

Last weekend you and I came up with a fun way to welcome in the warmer weather. I grabbed one of your bath toys from when you were a toddler and we headed out to the same creek we explored a couple of months ago during the blizzard.

The plan was simple: Drop the turtle into the creek and see how far we could follow it.

Because of the recent rain, there was plenty of current to carry your turtle along without much delay. It even made it all the way through a storm drain. I had thought for certain you and I would have to creep in there and rescue it; but no, not at all.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

Good thing you were wearing your Spiderman rain boots, by the way.

I couldn’t help but sort of notice, the further we went along, that we were technically in between two backyards at all times.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

The creek apparently serves as the divider between backyards on two parallel streets. Hopefully I was right in my thinking that us walking right alongside the creek, we weren’t actually in anyone’s backyard, no matter which side of the creek we were on.

No one came out and stopped us, at least.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

The coolest part was when the streets began veering away from each other into a “Y” formation, causing there to be a patch of woods in the middle. It was there that we discovered a really cool tree house!

That was about the place where the creek sort of faded into the woods. By that time, we needed to meet Mommy back at the house for dinner.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

So the next day on Sunday, I drove you two or three neighborhoods away, in an attempt to pick up right where we left off from the day before.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

We indeed found the creek, but more importantly, we found an entire flooded field; which was again, technically in was people’s backyards, but not quite.

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

You enjoyed poking a stick into mole holes as well as jumping into the puddles. It’s amazing what interesting things you can find in your own backyard… or someone else’s!

Love,

Daddy

Dear Jack: Exploring Other People’s Backyards, Technically

Leave a comment Posted on Nostalgia, parenting, Pregnancy, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Holly: You’ll Be Born in about One Month, Maybe on Earth Day!

35 weeks.

Dear Holly: You’ll Be Born in about One Month, Maybe on Earth Day!

Dear Holly,

Today is St. Patrick’s Day, when people celebrate a strange tradition in which Americans pretend to be more Irish than they actually are; in a loose effort to honor a Christian bishop and missionary in Ireland, who was actually born in England and who was actually of Italian descent… not Irish.

With Mommy and me both being ¼ Italian, that makes you and your brother ¼ Italian as well. But because people celebrate where St. Patrick lived as a missionary, instead of celebrating his actually ethnic descent, we celebrate Irish stereotypes today instead of Italian ones.

That explains why your brother and I are showing off our green attire in this picture.

With today being March 17th, and your due date being April 21st, we’re only about a month away from your arrival!

(You are now the size of a honeydew melon and that fact is becoming very obvious; as I look at Mommy’s tummy.)

Obviously, my 35th birthday is on April 20th; which is when I want you to be born. I want to share my birthday with you.

However, the full moon in April in 2 days later on the 22nd, which also happens to be Earth Day. There’s a theory that more babies are born near the date of the full moon because of the stronger gravitational pull; like the way the moon affects the ocean tides every night.

So in my mind, there’s a decent chance you’ll be born on April 22nd. I suppose that would be a pretty cool birthday to have, if you can’t share mine on April 20th.

Mommy predicts you’ll be born on April 24th, because of her work schedule.

As far as Mommy’s pregnancy, she’s getting to the point where it seems there’s no comfortable way for her to sleep. I’m sure that only gives her that much more motivation to look forward to you getting out of there.

A month is not a very long time. It’s just a matter of weeks before we see you.

Love,

Daddy

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