Captain America

1 Comment Posted on October 29, 2015October 29, 2015 movie reviews, Nostalgia, parenting, Storytelling, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Our “Practice Halloween” Night as a Family/We Watched Gremlins

4 years, 11 months.

Dear Jack,

Tonight we were able to “practice Halloween” at your preschool with all your friends. You got to be the coolest person possible: Captain America.

It was funny because all your friends who were boys were also dressed up as super heroes; but there were conveniently no duplicates: Batman, Iron Man, Spiderman…

As for Mommy and me, we took a more minimalist approach:

Mommy wore a zebra mask and I wore my cave man hat which I’ve owned for years.

(At Target, your costume only cost us $10 and Mommy’s mask was only $3.)

I like the fact you wanted to make sure your stuffed animal, Kitty, was dressed in costume too; as a baby in a onesie.

And by the way, you got a whole lot of candy! The proportion of candy-to-kids was definitely in your favor.

However, there’s a decent chance it’s going to rain on Saturday, which is Halloween.

So even though we are finally moved in to a nice suburban neighborhood where we can truly just walk door to door, instead of driving to a decent place, we may get rained out! Therefore, tonight served as our back-up plan to that happening to us.

And to set the mood for Halloween, I let you watch the 1984 Steven Spielberg movie, Gremlins; which is currently free on Amazon Prime right now.

I admit to having a few reservations in that it, along with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Jones, were the very first movies to be released under the PG-13 rating; as opposed to PG.

Granted, you watched Ant-Man and it was no issue for you.

I don’t regret my decision. You didn’t recognize the bad words, since to you, “stupid” is the one that concerns you the most right now.

And though parts of it are obviously creepy and violent, it was nothing you hadn’t seen on Goosebumps. I’m not saying I recommend showing Gremlins to all 5 year-olds, but I feel confident in us being able to enjoy it together.

You were on the edge on your seat the whole time, and you loved Gizmo. Not to mention, you’ve already proclaimed that when we go to Nonna and Papa’s house next time, you’ll be bringing home my old Gizmo doll.

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on September 27, 2015September 27, 2015 Uncategorized

Dear Jack: What I Bought Instead of an $70 Gorilla Costume

4 years, 8 months.

Dear Jack,

It all started last weekend when our family was at Target getting your Halloween costume. We amazingly found a Captain America costume for just 10 bucks!

In the next aisle, I found a gorilla costume for $30. The thing is, I’ve always wanted one. My way of thinking is, you never know when one might come in handy…

I tried it on, but fortunately, it was a “XL” size for boys; the body of it fit a little tight, but I could have made it work. However, the head mask itself was too small to even fit past my forehead.

Since then, I have checked in every store comparable to Target, as well as those seasonal Halloween stores.

The going rate for a men’s gorilla costume is $80.

So it’s $30 for an XL boy size, but $80 for the next size up; a men’s.

I have great plans for a new character for our Jack-Man series; a mutant beast that would be a reoccurring character.

And the thing is, gorilla costumes really aren’t that common, but they are recognizable. I think a gorilla would make a very fascinating and dynamic character for our videos.

As for now, the story ends with our family going yesterday morning to Super Target, near our house. I did find a men’s gorilla costume there for $70…

However, I also found a $25 Chewbacca men’s onesie and a $15 Target brand “Angry Teddy Mask.”

(I’ll still check the morning after Halloween to see if I can get the gorilla costume half off at Super Target.)

When I got home yesterday, I decided I could cover up the Chewbacca’s sash with a green puffy vest I already had, to make the costume original for our videos.

So for nearly half the price of the best deal I could find on a gorilla costume, I made my own beastly creature costume.

If things go as planned, everyone will be able to catch a glimpse of my new beastly character after we film a new webisode of Jack-Man next weekend…

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on December 31, 2014 Nostalgia, parenting, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: The Day After Christmas Was Still Fun Too!

4 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

With Mommy and I both being able to take the day after Christmas off (Friday, December 26^th), we were able to extend our official Christmas break to basically a 5 day holiday.

That meant that the fun wasn’t over just because Christmas day had passed. The morning started off with you trying on some on gag glasses that happened to stashed with some of my old toys there at Nonna and Papa’s house.

You then put them on Pandy and made him the teacher of the class…

Mommy and I decided to take you and Nana in the Lexus LX on a one hour drive through the mountains to a place called Flintstone, Georgia; where my own grandparents live, just a few miles from the Chattanooga, Tennessee city limit.

We filled up the built-in cooler with Larabars and water for snacks; and I made sure we had some DVDs for you to watch on the way there.

Of course we adults had plenty of beautiful mountain scenery to enjoy, as you sang to us…

We rarely end up visiting that side of the family during the holidays, so once we got there, I saw cousins I haven’t seen since before you were born.

To break the ice with them, and to help make you feel more relaxed, I took turns sneaking up to each one of my male cousins and pretending to punch them in the stomach; in the over-the-top style of the Power Rangers, or Marvel Universe Live that we recently saw.

“Punch the one with the white beard, Daddy!” you instructed me after you saw one of my uncles sitting on the couch.

Realizing that we had moved on from pretending to punch my male cousins to now my uncles, I “started a fight” with my Uncle Johnny (Papa’s older brother); who I would probably have to say other than your Papa, is most responsible for essentially teaching me to roughhouse at family get-togethers.

Once I “punched him” and told him that you told me to do it, he started motioning to you from across the room to “come here.”

He grabbed you by the foot and pulled you across the rug as you laughed hysterically.

Shortly after, my aunt Rosa (Papa’s youngest sister) asked you to let her take Pandy home and once you refused, she started swatting you with a roll of wrapping paper; like the way you and I played just the day before.

Horseplay really is the best way for a little boy to get to know his extended family, if you ask me.

Afterwards, I took you outside on the deck for some fresh air.

Then it was time was receive your gift from my grandmother, which couldn’t been any more appropriate for you:

A Captain America racecar and his nemesis Red Skull’s vehicle as well. You were so proud!

Before we left for a late lunch at Whole Foods, just 8 miles away, one of my cousins helped me load up Papa’s gift, a 3 ton jack, into the Lexus LX.

Once we got home, Papa showed you how the jack worked, in his shop.

And Mommy and I even ventured out and bought our new house’s washer and dryer at Gary’s in my hometown of Fort Payne, AL.

So yeah, the fun didn’t end just because Christmas day was over!

Love,

Daddy

Leave a comment Posted on December 19, 2014 Nostalgia, parenting, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: The Glory Of Classic American Holiday Sweaters

4 years, 1 month.

Dear Jack,

I recently realized that of all people, I didn’t own an official holiday sweater. Seriously, I’m the epitome of dads who should own one!

A few days ago at work, my friend Sam walked in wearing a holiday sweater featuring two reindeer facing each other, with a giant snowflake in between them.

That’s the moment I became aware of my sweaterless condition.

Conveniently, the same day I received a gift card for Target. I was there for probably 30 minutes, not really impressed by any of their holiday sweaters; either too expensive or just not enough character. But right as I officially gave up, I saw it…

A Captain America sweater! Seriously, how awesome is that?!

It couldn’t be more perfect.

Turns out, today at your school, KinderCare, it was “holiday sweater day.” So you got to wear your grumbly monster sweater, while I wore my new one as well.

So now you and I are both set when it comes to owning that special token holiday sweater. Both of ours are funny, masculine, and awesome… to represent us, right?

I feel that little stories like these really help represent my pride as your dad. I love it that you enjoy making goofy selfies with me.

It’s so much fun to celebrate in stuff like this together with you. I keep reminding you that a year from now, the first of the new Star Wars movies will be in theatres and we’ll get to see it together. What a perfect time to be a little boy!

You’ve already expressed interest in Yoda.

And I think daily about how next summer, we get to camp out in the backyard of a new house, that we are scheduled to close on January 29^th.

I like being your Daddy.

Love,

Daddy

3 Comments Posted on December 16, 2014December 18, 2014 parenting, reviews, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Marvel Universe Live- Family Friendly Review (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

4 years.

Dear Jack,

Having visited the Wizard World Atlanta Comic Con this past June in Atlanta and seen all the Marvel characters there, Mommy and I decided it would be a good decision for our family to drive the luxurious Lexus RX 450h to downtown Nashville this past weekend to see Marvel Universe Live!

Even though we live in Nashville, as a family we only visit downtown a few times per year. So I took advantage of using the GPS to remind myself how to get to the Bridgestone Arena, while we all listened to classic Christmas tunes on Sirius XM.

I am pleased to say that the show was completely appropriate and relevant for you; having just turned 4 years old a few weeks ago.

You have recently gained great interest in watching Power Rangers on Netflix. It was that same type of thrilling, over-the-top action in the Marvel Universe Live show that you were exposed to, only instead of on a laptop screen, you got to see it live in person, while sitting in between Mommy and Daddy.

I paid attention to all the families around us and they seemed to be as excited as we were to be there.

One of my favorite parts was the getting to see the nonstop motorcycle tricks. Conveniently, most of the Avengers (Captain America, Black Widow, Bruce Banner before he becomes the Hulk, Wolverine, Spiderman. etc.) all drive motorcycles while constantly “popping wheelies.”

I was so impressed when Captain America jumped up a ramp unto a ledge; it had to be at least 15 feet high!

And of course there were constantly explosions going on; one of the bad buys even “caught on fire” and ran around on flames.

Mommy’s favorite part was when Spiderman “stood upside-down” on the Green Goblin’s glider.

Speaking of flying, there was a lot of that going on the entire show!

I’m pretty sure your favorite part was when Bruce Banner turned into the Hulk.

How awesome!

The crowd went wild when that happened. It was awesome to see. Our seats happened to be right where that was taken place.

However, my warmest memory of Mommy and I taking you to see Marvel Universe Live was during intermission. Our friends the Van Dykes ended up winning the giveaway I did on the Facebook page for Family Friendly Daddy Blog.

So as we were speaking to them, I happened to look down at you, as you were sitting on Mommy’s lap, looking to the aisle with your hand raised up in the air.

I then saw that a vendor was selling illuminating toy swords and you wanted one. It didn’t help that Jackson, the Van Dykes’ 3 year-old son, had gotten one at the beginning of the show.

I offered to buy you any $15 Transformer you wanted instead, knowing we were going to Target the next morning…

All I can say is you’re one lucky kid. It didn’t take much more than a frantic look from you, knowing that was your only chance to get one of those swords, and you had convinced Mommy and me to bascially beg the vendor to take our $25 so we could get you that sword.

And boy you were proud. Just as I expected, this sword was not simply an impulse buy.

The next morning, Mommy and I found you in bed, clutching the sword. From there, we went to go see Santa at Bass Pro Shop; and you guessed it, you took the sword!

We had a wonderful time as a family and I would recommend Marvel Universe Live to any families who would like to see non-stop action, explosions, fires, motorcycle stunts, martial arts, and “flying” Marvel characters.

I hope Marvel Universe Live returns to Nashville next year!

Love,

Daddy

Catch up on the entire series of the Lexus RX 450h Weekend. A lot of exiciting things happened!

2014 Lexus RX 450h 5-DR SUV (DVD Player Equipped): Family Friendly Review

Dear Jack: Marvel Universe Live- Family Friendly Review (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

Dear Jack: Meeting Santa With Sophie At Bass Pro Shop (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

Dear Jack: Jacob’s 5th Birthday Party In A Tractor Store (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

Dear Jack: The Old Abandoned Silo Tower On Main Street in Spring Hill, TN (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

Dear Jack: Our New House’s Shutters, Mailbox, & Interior Paint (Lexus RX 450h Weekend)

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