But the day before, I published Webisode 22 of Jack-Man, “Tin Roof Rusted,” which announced that Jack-Man is going to be a big brother; it even showed the sonogram.
It is our “pregnancy announcement video.”
For over 24 hours, our video was live on YouTube, having been promoted on Facebook and Twitter as well. But it flew under the radar.
It wasn’t until Thursday morning that our news started spreading, but I embedded our video in that post so everyone see it which definitely helped bring up traffic to it.
I just loved the idea of incorporating our family’s pregnancy announcement in a video format; especially in our already established web series.
Of course, we couldn’t have done it without the help of your teacher, Ms. Aimee Cornelius, who served as a “camera woman.”
With me in full costume, it was impossible to both direct and film the webisode.
In “Tin Roof Rusted,” things pick up immediately from the point the previous webisode left off; with Vegan Bear taking the 2015 Toyota Corolla for a drive, with Jack-Man in the back seat.
Once they arrive back in the driveway, Jack-Man decides to check the mail, only to discover a mysterious letter which he can’t see to keep his hands on…
You have already asked me when we can do our next Jack-Man video that features Vegan Bear.
Even though you obviously know it’s just me in that costume, I think on some level, interacting with the character of Vegan Bear helps to sustain your imagination enough to believe you are actually friends with a real life mutant vegan bear.
But it’s just me. It’s father and son bonding via a silly costume and a silly video.
We attempted to film webisodes 21 and 22 of Jack-Man on Saturday morning… but the cold, the light rain, and the realized need for a 3rd person to serve as cameraman and props holder got in the way of that.
Fortunately, your Pre-K teacher Ms. Aimee heard about what was going on and saved the day.
She came over on Sunday, when the weather was slightly better, and we filmed both webisodes back to back. There’s no way we could have done this without Ms. Aimee’s help:
In “Vegan Bear Scare”, we introduced the new character, Vegan Bear. Originally, I intended for him to be a gorilla, but the suit was too expensive.
By default, this is our Halloween episode, as I admit: Vegan Bear is by far the creepiest villain Jack-Man has ever encountered.
The theme song to Jack-Man states this about the series:
“Jack-Man knows just where to hit ‘em, when it comes to creepy villains.
He packs a punch and eats a healthy lunch.”
Perhaps this webisode capitalizes on that concept more than ever, with such a creepy villain and such a focus on healthy eating.
Vegan Bear explains where vegans get their protein and nutrients, from 6 sources:
Veggies, fruits, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds.
Ultimately, “Vegan Bear Scare” is technically the 1st half of the story; as Webisode 22, “Tin Roof Rusted,” will immediately pick up where Webisode 21 left off.
But I decided to release them as 2 separate webisodes because of their unique content.
Also, both of these webisodes feature Vegan Bear driving Jack-Man in the 2015 Toyota Corolla!
Here’s a piece of trivia about “Vegan Bear Scare”: it’s the only other webisode, besides Webisode 2, that doesn’t feature Green Meanie.
That’s in part because I wanted all the “villain focus” to be on Vegan Bear, not Green Meanie. The other reason is because Green Meanie shows up on the 2nd half of the story line, in Webisode 22.
I think “Vegan Bear Scare” turned out to be very exciting. However, the next one coming up, “Tin Roof Rusted” is… simply epic.
Take a look at me in this corny picture I took yesterday using a self-timer and a tripod.
If you saw me, and didn’t know who I was, would you think to yourself, “I wonder if that guy is getting enough protein…”?
Chances are, you see a guy who really doesn’t have weight to lose or to gain in order to be healthy. And that’s the truth: For my age and weight, I am perfectly in the “optimal” range.
I’m 34 years old, 5’9”, and weigh around 153 pounds (I fluctuate between 148 and 155 throughout the year).
But back in 2008, I peaked at 178 pounds, which according to the chart, put me in the “overweight” category.
So now that we’ve established I’m not underweight, or overweight, why is it that in the past few years, people have asked me if I’m getting enough protein?
After all, that’s not something people typically ask each other:
“Are you getting enough protein?”
In fact, I challenge you to name 3 people you’ve personally known in your lifetime who weren’t getting enough protein; excluding people with eating disorders or people dying of a disease- neither of which apply to vegans like me.
But the moment people find out I’ve been a vegan for about 2 and a half years (and a vegetarian for more than a year before that), they feel compelled to make sure I’m getting enough protein.
Why is that?
Because we’ve collectively been brainwashed to believe that without eating animal products, we will not get enough protein.
In reality, vegans easily get enough protein from 6 easy sources: veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds, beans, and grains.
And again, look at me. How am I not living proof that vegans get enough protein?
Granted, if all I ate was white bread and apple juice, I could see the concern. But that wouldn’t be a healthy, balanced diet. To me that’s the equivalent of someone who “experimented with veganism in college.”
However, they failed because they weren’t actually getting enough all around nutrition, instead, they depended on processed foods.
It’s simple: I eat plenty of unprocessed veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, and grains.
I don’t have a gym membership. Instead, I simply take at least two 10 minute walks each day, as well as ride my mountain bike and go for runs throughout the week.
I don’t count calories. I don’t go hungry; I eat as much as I want. No portion control.
For our final stop of our Camry family road trip across northern California, we drove from Monterey to Santa Cruz, before ultimately heading back to Sacramento, where Mommy’s side of the family is from.
Mommy had told me that once before she had been to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk Beach Amusement Park and thought our family would really love it.
So we put it on the agenda, following our trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Here’s my video I made about our trip there:
To get going, we stopped at Staff of Life’s Café Del Sol for some vegan donuts. I know that to an outsider that may not seem like that big of a deal, but for a vegan dad like me, it’s epic.
Where we live in Nashville, there is no easy access to vegan donuts; they definitely don’t sell them at our Whole Foods. It would be different if we lived in Portland, Oregon; which I hear is the “Vegan Donut Capitol of the World.”
But where we live, donuts made without eggs and milk basically cease to exist. Therefore, we enjoyed our breakfast!
When we arrived at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk, we had about 45 minutes to walk there on the beach; since we had arrived before the amusement park itself had opened yet.
Our family budgeted $50 for the 2 hours we were there; and we based on the 2 hour time limit on how much we were willing to pay the parking meter.
You definitely wanted to play some games, so bought $50 worth of tickets so we could go on two rides with all 3 of us, then let you go on several rides by yourself, then spend the rest on games.
I loved how ambitious you were! You rode your very first roller coaster with Mommy and me: the Sea Serpent. It was pretty thrilling for a boy who’s not quite 5 years old yet.
But at 42 inches tall, you were just tall enough to be permitted to ride.
Our other family ride was the Cave Train Adventure, where we were able to “time travel” to the days of caveman and dinosaurs; it was completely dark in there, except for the black lights.
For your individual rides, you were able to fly a plane as well as a drive a monster SUV, a boat, an orca whale, and a big rig truck. You loved it all!
And then there were the carnival games…
I made sure you only played the games with the sign that read, “A winner every time!”
Your best venture was Bob’s Fishin’ Hole. On the first try, we accidently figured out that the blue fish, which flowed further away from the ledge nearest you, were the heavier fish, which were worth the biggest prizes.
So you caught 3 blue fish and one the biggest prize they had: A giant blue pirate fish stuffed animal. On the first try!
By the end our 2 hours, you had a prize in each of the 3 sizes.
We returned to the Camry with 7 minutes to spare, then he finished our day with dinner at Whole Foods, where we enjoyed more vegan donuts.
And finally, that’s it.
That’s our whole Camry family road trip. We had a blast. I look forward to next year when we travel to San Diego for your Uncle Jake’s wedding.
It definitely was an honor this week when Baby+Co. invited me to come check out their new facility in Nashville, which just opened a couple of weeks ago.
They sought me out, knowing that based on the content of Family Friendly Daddy Blog, I am passionate about… keeping things real.
When my wife had our son nearly 5 years ago, she went through a midwife at Vanderbilt. Coincidentally, the Clinical Director of the Nashville Baby+Co., Margaret Buxton, who you’ll see in both of my videos below, actually was the one who delivered my son.
Our family visited the new Nashville Baby+Co. facility yesterday in the 2015 Toyota Avalon we are reviewing.
Once we got there, I kept the camera rolling. I wanted to make the most useful videos I could for curious people of YouTube.
As a YouTuber myself, I know the importance of making walk through videos, walk around videos, and unboxing videos.
So I made a walk through video, with Margaret Buxton giving “you” the tour. Here it is:
Being the Millennial (Generation Y, born 1981-1997) I am, I showed up to Baby+Co. without a specific game plan; a life habit that so far, that has seemed to work out for me.
I sat down with Margaret Buxton CNM, DNP to ask 10 frequently asked questions. The goal was to help other people to know whether Baby+Co. is right for them and to help them know what sets Baby+Co. apart from hospitals.
In this FAQs video below, you will see me ask the following 10 questions:
How do I know Baby+Co. is right for me?
Is it safe to have a baby outside of a hospital?
How is a birthing center different from a hospital?
What does a hospital have than Baby+Co. doesn’t?
What is one-to-one care?
How much does this cost?
Where are the prenatal appointments?
What do the classes consist of?
Where are the Baby+Co. locations?
What is the vision of Baby+Co.?
I love it that for our generation, we have other options now; including the way we choose to do childbirth.
By the way, it would be an understatement to say that the facility is like a spa. So elegant.
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