Father’s Day 2011
It’s Father’s Day 2011. I became a father a week short of my 37th birthday. In my mind, a man at 37 is probably fairly well established in his chosen profession, and secure in all things financial. Three months after Kate was born, I was let go from my chosen field, little did I know at the time that I’d be out for good. Staying in broadcasting would likely have meant a move out of town, probably out of state. Been there, done that, and didn’t want to do it again, especially with a family in tow.
Unemployment gave me 6 months as a Mr. Mom and a special introduction to fatherhood. I certainly wouldn’t trade that time for another meaningless 6 months in radio.
12 years later a recurring theme is readily apparent. 12 years of work, selling beds, cars, loans and insurance have been fun and occasionally fruitful, but really…almost meaningless. Suffice to say I haven’t changed the world. All of the above was a means to an end, supporting a household.
Decisions on employment could be second guessed eternally, but the underlying consideration in all judgments was my kids. I wanted flexibility and freedom to be an active and willing participant in their lives. I work hard and enjoy work, but I am not a workaholic. After losing my own Dad at 13, I couldn’t bear the thought of being the guy who looks back on his life and wishes he spent more time with his children.
Those 3 am feedings and changing poopie diapers was not just for Lori. Bathtime and bedtime were playtime. If it was the straw that broke the camel’s back, it will be the piggyback rides that do me in. There’s pages of stories in my noggin between peek a boo and training wheels, and just as many from that first bike to the first lacrosse practice just 3 months ago.
I’ve made mistakes as a parent and would welcome some do overs, but that’s life. I guess my most sincere hope is that I’ve set a good example, as they learn so much more by seeing and experiencing than they do from hearing me lecture about life.
In 6 months I’ll turn 50. By then I’ll have a teenaged daughter and a 9 year old boy. Exiting college I imagined great things for a 50 year old Bri. I’d have logged decades ruling the radio dial from behind the mike in some major market. Perhaps I’d have retired triumphantly and gone into station ownership.
Alas, I’m just a guy making a living in Anywhere, USA. Yet I feel wealthy as hell, because I AM LUCKY TO BE A FATHER, SO BLESSED to have Kate and Nathan. Time invested in them always brings great returns. They are my pot of gold. So greetings from the end of the rainbow on another great day, that just happens to be called Father’s Day.
December Madness
Holy cow, haven’t posted in over a month. December is extra nuts at the Williams house. Nathan turned 7 on the 12th. Kate will be 11 on the 20th and I’ll be 48 on the 27th. Then there’s that little thing called Christmas and New Year’s too, and it makes for a blur of activity.
Nate’s birthday goodies were a big hit, and included a set of poker chips. Poker chips? Yes, he and I and sometimes Kate play a lot of Texas Hold ‘em. It is a lot of fun, unpredictable of course and makes the kids think about risk, reward, bluffing and reading people.
He got a dartboard, and is quickly kicking my fanny in Double in, Double Out. After playing with a 3 dollar mini nerf football in WalMart a 100 times, we finally got him one. It’s the small one that looks like an arrow is stuck in it. Much easier for him to throw a spiral with. I had plenty of balsa wood planes as a kid, and got him one with the propeller and rubber band. They still fly great! Available with hundreds of other nicely priced gifts on Main Street in Ephrata at the Fun-Est Toy Store Ever. http://www.thefun-esttoystoreever.com/catalog/index.php
As a surprise we took Nathan, his friend Trent and Kate to go swimming at the New Holland Rec. It’s very nice there, but 5 minutes after getting in the pool they had to get out because the staff discovered someone had pooped in the pool. Doody!!!! They closed the pool for 24 hours. We got a refund and free passes too. Excellent customer service on their part!
Sadly, though predictably, Nathan learned the truth about Santa this year. I think Kate learned in 1st grade too. There’s always some know-it-all brat in school that has to ruin the fantasy. Nathan asked Lori about it one day after school, and she had to tell him the truth. He cried and was pretty upset for a little while. Though by dinner he was over it, and had already figured out the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny were bogus too. Sigh.
For the 2nd year we passed on the Elizabeth Farms Christmas Tree experience. It’s fun, but 80 bucks for a tree is nuts. Norka was short on Fraser fir, so we went to the old standby, Frysville Farms. I think it was 35 bucks for a tree they cut down like 2 months ago…oh well.
Kate is suddenly hooked on Justin Bieber, whoever that is. All she wants for Christmas is a cell phone. We’ll see.
Trick Or Treat Night
Here’s a photo of Kate and Nathan before going out Friday night for Trick or Treat. We were tearing up rags to make Nathan’s Mummy costume only moments before. Less than an hour in the neighborhood filled their bags with a ton of goodies.
I’m a P-I-G!
But of course you probably already thought this! Actually, I’m referring to Kate beating me in “Horse” on our driveway hoop. We often play “pig” so it goes faster. She was nailing everything and knocked me out fair and square!
Tonight we played “Monkey IN The Middle” with Nathan, and the super huge beach ball Kate won in VA. We’re just squeezing in as much outdoor play as we can before school starts. I start coaching Kate’s U12 soccer team next week, and that will limit our weeknight playtime.
A (yard) Wasted Weekend
Oy! My aching back! I trimmed the low hanging branches of a couple of hemlock trees in my backyard on Saturday and Sunday. Trimming was the easy part. Bagging the sh$! up was the hard part. I filled 24 40 gallon yard waste bags. Good’s Disposal will need to send a fleet just for us.
Saturday afternoon the manual labor was pleasantly put on hold, as Lori and I attended a reunion of her first team from Biggest Loser. No one was counting calories at this bash!
Sunday was more man against yard. Call it a draw. I visited 5 Open Houses in Ephrata, to see what’s for sale in town. Still a buyer’s market my friends…giddy up.
Kate and Nathan played Guitar Hero for approximately 9 hours. Kate only quit to watch the Jonas Brothers marathon on Disney. Lori gleefully escaped the noise to go to work. I napped through some of it, but honestly can’t recall Sunday night cuz my back and bones still ached.
A New Addition To The Family!!!
Kate has been begging for a pet for a long time, and more so since she went to a Petsmart in VA. Friday we went to the Lancaster Petsmart and she got a guinea pig, which she eventually named Nelli.
Shortly after getting Nelli situated, Kate took her out and let Nathan hold her, but not for long! “It feels like she’s pooping on me!”
My Golf Career Is Over!!!
138. I shot 138 yesterday at Iron Valley. Last year at the same course I shout 97.
Over 30 strokes in penalties did me in. But ultimately it was my lack of playing that all but guaranteed a horrible round. It was only my 2nd round of the year. And that round was a 110 at the short and easy Manor Golf Course.
This is so hard to stomach, but it makes sense. I started playing at 13, played in high school, and from the age of 24 to the age of 36 I played a lot of golf, like twice a week from the first thaw in March to the first snowflakes in late November. Once Kate was born, and my career path changed, I no longer had the time or passion for the game.
This is not a game you can expect to play well without repetition. Some years I’ve played less than 5 times. It is hard to do something you once were pretty darn good at. What can you think of that you no longer perform as well?
138. 79 on the front nine! That barely beats my score the first time I ever played 9 holes of real golf, 34 years ago, when I had an 81.
Better stick to team sports and share the misery of ineptitude!
This & That Weekend 7/11-7/12
Friday night we made one our regular visits to “Victor’s”, which is Victor Emmanuel II in Reading. Usually you get food in a hurry, like 5 minutes after you order it, but it was like 20 on Friday…which may be normal anywhere else, but if you know Victor’s, that’s like an hour! Oh well, 1 time out of a 100 won’t keep us from going back. Too cheap and too good not to go. That great super cheesy well done Sicilian pizza for a buck a slice. Steak and salad was what I had. The regular order must have a pound of chopped steak. I saved half for lunch on Sunday.
I skipped the pizza because I knew we’d be having pizza Saturday at a pool party. I decided to start getting more deliberate with nutrition, and finally start heeding my doctor’s advice of no white flour, no white sugar. No doesn’t mean no to me obviously, it means not much. Been gobbling fruits galore. Even before I started the “new plan” I would do banana, apple and grapes every day. Now I’ve added plum, peach and blueberries to mix.
The pool party reunited the familes that when to Stone Harbor last month, and Lori put together a killer scrapbook of photos on Shutterfly. We all chipped in to give a copy of the book to Hannah the babysitter who stayed with us and kept all the young ones occupied.
Sunday I set up the badminton set again. See below. Great fun. Enjoyed it with my brother Jim back in the day, and also in high school, when gym class adopted it along with weird stuff like archery and and frisbee football.
The kids and I went to see Night at The Museum at Kendig Square. Pretty good film Can’t beat the price at Kendig! 2 bucks a piece. 4 bucks for large popcorn and 3 bucks for large soda. Both unlimited refills. Theatres are small, no stadium seating, but what the heck, it’s worth the 40 minute drive from Ephrata.
Totally digging on this July weather! How incredible is this? Two weeks in the high 70’s low 80s with no humidity and only a couple showers? Ready for a “normal” week, no travel, no events. How you doin?
4th of July Getaway: Smith Mountain Lake, VA
Every 4th of July since 1996 Lori & I have spent the 4thof July at her folks place on Smith Mountain Lake in VA, about 40 minutes South of Roanoke and Lynchburg. It is a grueling, unpleasant drive for an hour on the PA turnpike, 4 to 5 hours on Rt.81 and then an hour on local roads twisting and turning to we get there. It’s worth it! The refreshingly cool lake waters are just a short walk down the steps from the lower deck of Dave & Marcia’s house.
The kids were down since the Saturday before the 4th, and Lori and I came down Friday the 3rd. Lots of sunning, reading, floating, splashing, boating, eating, eating and more eating. Marcia makes 3 huge meals every day, with more than just a little help from my brother-in-law David. (Somehow I dragged my butt out to jog 3 miles each day!)
Weather has been great. Only 1 rainy day. We used that day to go to “The Bridge”, home to a ticket arcade, where Kate and Nathan played skeeball and other games to win tickets to trade in for fabulously wonderful prizes that would be overpriced in a Dollar Store.
We spent time inside playing Clue, Monopoly, Shut the Box and Farkel. Ever played Farkel? It’s a simple yet really fun dice game.
Four days is the right amount of time here, as we were just at the shore for a week in mid June. The kids will be back in a month for more Nana & Pops time. Nathan cashed in on his first ever attempt at water skiing. Nana and Uncle Davey each gave him 20 bucks to get him to try it. He is quite the negotiator!
Lori read The Quickie by James Patterson. I finally finished Younger Next Year by Dr. Henry Lodge. The Daves and I spent many hours watching Wimbledon tennis. Crushed by Roddick’s tough loss. No HBO in our house, so I caught Knocked Up one night. Hilarious!
It’ll be tough to depart Tuesday morning, but always good to be home too.
Kid Free!
Saturday morning I drove Kate & Nathan down to Virginia, meeting up with my mother-in-law half-way to her house on Smith Mountain Lake. The kids will be their Nana and PawPaw until Lori & I join them later this week.
It’s always nice to have a break from being Mommy & Daddy, but we miss them nonetheless.