I live for the time I spend with my family.  Coming home to a great big hug makes the 9 to 5 worthwhile.  I enjoy every single second of the time I’m home with my family.  Just last night, as soon as I got home from work, my daughter pulled me into the family room for some tackle hugs.  She grabbed my hand and pulled me to a good spot clear of furniture where she ran towards me, and tackled me in a knock down roll around hug.  Simple things like that can truly be the highlight of my day.

Today’s post is about family.  I’ve joined up with other bloggers in something called Random Acts of Kick Arse (RAOKA.)  The name is kind of silly, but I think that was kind of the point.  On the first Wednesday of each month, a group of us blog about a single topic.  It’s similar to my campfire series, but instead of combining in a single post, we post to our own blogs and link to each other.  Today’s topic is family.

We just celebrated our thirteenth wedding anniversary.    For nine of those years, we had a family of two.  It was just my wife and me, and we were happily plugging along.  We enjoyed the time we had together and enjoyed the freedom of being childless.  Our decision to have a child came after much discussion (and some voice of intuition.)  We planned and prepared as much as we could.

Then, after nine years in a family of two, our family grew by one, and we became a family of three.  I have four great days in my memory banks.  Days that were absolutely fantasticly wonderful days.  These are red letter days.  Days that I remember above all others.  All four of those days revolve around family, and I’d like to share them with you.

1)  The Family of Two

The first of my wonderful memory days is the day I entered into a family of two.  It was the day I got married.  I can remember it like it was yesterday.  Standing there, waiting for my fiancé to walk down the aisle to become my wife.  The day was a blur of activity, yet I remember one thing very clearly; seeing her for the first time in her wedding dress as she walked toward me.  She looked amazing and I felt love as though my heart would burst.  That was the beginning of our family of two.

2)  The Family of Three

The day my daughter was born.  Childbirth is scary, no doubt about it.  I can’t tell you how many movies I’ve seen where the wife dies in childbirth.  I guess it happened a lot before proper medical supervision.  I thought about the safety of my wife and my unborn daughter.  I was scared but my wife didn’t know it.  I hid that and told her everything would be fine, supporting her and encouraging her.  It wasn’t until much later that I told her of the fear I held on that glorious day.  She was surprised, so I suppose I hid it well.  The birth went great.  The doctor actually asked if I wanted to deliver the baby, but I decided to leave that to the professionals.  Instead I stood by my wife, encouraging her, and watching the amazing process of child birth.  Everything worked out great, and all of sudden I was a dad.

3) Daughter’s Daddy

The day I realized I wasn’t always “Eric” any more, instead I would forever be known as “daughter’s daddy.”  (With her name inserted in the place of “daughter.”  I’ve decided to keep her name off of the Internet.)  This day came unexpectedly.  I was in the front yard doing some yard work.  One of the neighbors was walking by, and she said to her kids, “that’s daughter’s daddy.”    It hadn’t hit me that I would no longer be known as Eric, but as daughter’s daddy.  It was a great feeling; losing one identity and gaining a new and improved one.  A new identity tied to my daughter.

That little story has an interesting twist.  A short time later after my daughter learned to talk she decided that daddy wasn’t the best name.  You see, my wife calls me by my first name, Eric.  She has pet names too, and usually refers to me as daddy when talking to my daughter, but mostly it’s Eric.  And Eric certainly gets my attention the best.  Well, my daughter decided that “Eric” was the best way to refer to me too.  After all, that’s what mommy calls me, and it always gets my attention.  She knows I’m her daddy, and every once in a while she’ll call me daddy, but most of the time it’s Eric.  I’m happy with this, and I really like it that she decided on her own the most special name to call me.  I think my parents were a bit surprised the first time they heard it, as most everyone is, but I think they’ve finally come around to accepting it.  You should see the look on my friends faces the first time they hear this tiny little girl call me by my first name.

4) Full Time with the Family

The fourth of my most memorable days is the day I was laid off.  I went into detail on this topic in an earlier post, so you can check that out for all the details.  To sum it up, for three months I was unemployed and got to spend every minute of the day at home with my family.  For three months, I got to thoroughly enjoy every single second of every single day.  I would have never taken three months off in the middle of my career, and I am very happy that it was forced upon me. I was the best time of my entire life.

There you have it.  My four fondest memories and they all revolve around family.  Now it’s your turn to join in the RAOKA movement.  Share your thoughts on family.  Do you have some great memories?   Would you share them with us in the comments section?

Each month we pick a new topic to share.  Interested in joining the movement?  Contact Lori for details.

Be sure to check out the other blogs in this month’s RAOKA by heading over to Jane Be Nimble.



I was just at the store perusing the Valentine’s Day cards hoping to get a jump on the holiday.  Instead, I came away a bit frustrated.  Since when did a Valentine’s Day card become an apology?  More than half of all the cards I read through went like this:

I know we don’t always get along, but…

I haven’t always been the best husband…

We’ve been through some ups and downs…

We’ve had our share of hard times…

I hope that black eye heals up…

Ok, I made the last one up, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see that on a card.  Who wants to hear about bad stuff on Valentine’s Day?  A day to celebrate love and togetherness should not be the time to apologize for all the wrongs or bring up the bad times of the past.  It’s a time to celebrate a life together, to look to the future, to reminisce about the wonderful events of the past, and pronounce the love and sentiment that may not be spoken during the course of a normal day.  Every year, I spend a lot of time, reading through all the cards on the shelf, trying to pick out the one that expresses my sentiments.  Each year, I can only find one or two on the entire rack of cards that come close to expressing my feelings.  Well, today at the card store, I couldn’t find a single card.  I left the store without a Valentine’s Day card.

So, what am I to do?  Well, I have a few ideas.  I may create my own card.  I might write a love letter.  I might try another card store.  I’m not real sure which direction I’ll go, but I’m leaning towards writing something myself.  This way I can express my true sentiments; sentiments that are not likely to be in any off the shelf card.

As I was searching for ideas, I composed this list of ways to share an expression of love.

1. Create or modify a Valentine’s Card
   http://www.stvalentinesday.org/valentines-day-cards.html
2. Write a love letter
   http://www.stvalentinesday.org/valentines-day-love-letters.html
3. Share a favorite poem
   http://www.stvalentinesday.org/valentines-day-poem.html
4. Share a favorite quote
   http://www.stvalentinesday.org/valentines-day-love-quotes.html
5. With kids’ toys
   http://www.theromantic.com/stories/valentines/valentines15.htm
6. Create a memory poster
   http://www.theromantic.com/stories/valentines/valentines12.htm
7. Modify a book
   http://www.theromantic.com/stories/valentines/valentines7.htm
8. Inspiration Jar
   http://www.theromantic.com/stories/valentines/valentines4.htm

Do you have any Valentine’s Day card, letter, or other creative greeting ideas?  I’d love to hear them.

Image by Blue Stone Graphics

I’m not feeling like a lot of thinking today, so I’m going with a simple post tonight.  I started my new job yesterday, and my brain is tapped from all the new stuff.  New people, new places, new policies and procedure, new computer systems, etc.  With all that stuff sloshing around in my noggin, there’s not room for much else tonight.  So far, the new job is going great.  It seems like a great bunch of people, and looks like I will enjoy the work.

I hope everyone is having a good new year.  We had a great Christmas.  We spent time with grandparents on both sides of the family and our daughter had a blast opening presents.  She really got into it this year, and it was truly a joy to watch her excitement.

I was able to take some time off between jobs, and we took a few days for a little vacation to Savannah, GA.  We stayed right in the Historic District and toured some of the old houses and a couple of museums.  The town is absolutely beautiful and full of history.  Many of the houses here were built in the early 1800s, and all the historic houses had a small plaque showing the date it was built.  It was really neat to walk among all the old houses.

I missed posting on Thursday.  I was busy spending a wonderful evening with my family on Christmas Eve.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and I wish you all a happy, safe, and prosperous New Year!

I wanted to take a break from some of my “thinking” posts and just chit chat with my readers.  I calling it mish mash free for all, as that’s what popped into my head.  I often find it enjoyable to just read what’s going on in the life of my favorite bloggers, so that’s what this post is all about.  What’s up with me, and anything else I feel like rambling about.

Fun at Disney

We went to Disney’s Magic Kingdom last weekend.  We have annual passes, so we go quite often.  Every time we visit any of the Disney parks, we have a blast.  Our daughter is three years old, and it’s a magical age.  She thoroughly enjoys Disney, especially the princesses and fairies.  On this particular trip, we headed out to the park around 2:00pm.  We usually go for just half a day, and this time we decided to catch the fireworks show.  I’m going to let you in on a couple little secrets.  The Magic Kingdom has a special parking area for AAA diamond guests, these are guests that book their vacation through AAA.  This parking is very close to the front gate, so close there is no tram stop here.  Here’s the first secret… If you go to the park in the afternoon, nobody monitors this parking area, you can just drive up and get a great parking spot.

It’s very hard to pick a day that is less crowded than others.  I am baffled at the seemingly random days that are either packed or empty.  This day was probably an average day, with 30-60 minute lines on most rides.  Since it gets darker earlier, the fireworks were at 8:00, even though the park was open until 10:00.  Here comes the next secret…  after the fireworks, most everyone left!  That meant we were able to get on rides with NO LINES AT ALL!  Before the fireworks, we rode 4 rides in about 4 hours.  After the fireworks, we rode 7 rides in an hour and a half.

Through the Eyes of a Child

I’d like to share some pictures my daughter took.  We upgraded our camera a couple years ago, and still had the old one laying around.  We gave it to our three year old daughter figuring no big deal if it gets broken.  Well, she’s really taken to it, and managed to figure out how to work it.  I’m finding it a great way to view the world through the eyes of a child.

New Kitten

We got a new kitten the other day.  A neighbor found him abandoned and brought him home, but due to a dog/cat conflict of interest, the cat had to go.  I mentioned it to my wife when she got home, and the immediate response was YES!  Well, I wasn’t expecting a yes so quickly, but I knew that my daughter would love to have a cat.  I must mention at this point that we do already have one cat.  He’s part Siamese, and is very skittish.  The slightest little thing frightens him, and he is terrified of the high pitch shrieks that can come out of my three year old daughter.  In her entire three years in this life, she has only been able to pet him a handful of times.  So, needless to say, she is ecstatic with the new kitten.  He will actually sit still, while she pets him, and they chase each other all around the house.   We offered to let her name the new cat, and she immediately came up with a name.  It’s like she didn’t have to think about it at all.  So, we have a new cat named “Bunny Bunny.”

A Little Entertainment at Home

I’m excited that Netflix is finally making their Instant View movies available on the PlayStation 3.  I’ve been waiting for a way to view their streaming movies in my living room.  We don’t have cable television, so we do a lot of Netflix instead.  Also in PS3 news, I’ve been playing a lot of Ratchet and Clank lately.  In case you are wondering Ratchet and Clank is my all-time favorite game/series, and I was so excited that the new one came out.  It’s one of the few games that I’ll actually pay full price for.

A Great Day Jeepin’

The weather Saturday was amazing.  Not a cloud in the sky all day, and the temperature was just right.  A perfect day to take the top down on the Jeep.  In the morning I participated in the Orlando Veteran’s Day Parade with the Orlando Jeep Club.  Every year we participate in this parade to provide transportation to various veteran’s groups, especially for the older veterans that would have difficulty walking the one mile parade route.  In the past, we have ridden with the Tuskegee Airmen, the Battle of the Bulge Veterans, and the Daughters of the American Revolution.  It’s always a good time to meet people that have been part of history.  This year, we didn’t get assigned a group, and just had a few Jeeps recruited for transportation.  We were all a little disappointed, but still had a great time participating in the parade. 

To top of a great day of top down Jeepin’, we had our monthly meeting at the New Smyrna speedway to watch some auto racing.  We were invited by the owner of the track to do a parade lap around the track before the start of the race, and he also gave us free tickets to stay and watch the races.   We’ve done parade laps before at the Daytona International Speedway, and that was cool due to the venue, but they were very strict with the rules, and our top speed was maybe 5 mph.  On this night however, we cooked it around the New Smyrna Speedway at about 45 mph, which is pretty fast for a lifted Jeep around a race track.  By the time we left at about 10:30pm, the temperature had dropped, so I bundled up, turned on the heat, and enjoyed the drive home with the cool wind whipping around inside the Jeep.

Free for All

Well, that’s about all I have.  I just wanted a day to keep things light, and for you to get to know me a little better.  I want to thank everyone that reads my blog, and those that leave comments.  Comments are very important for us bloggers, as it helps us gauge reaction to our content.  I also want to thank my fellow bloggers, many of whom support my blog by leaving comments.  I’d like to give a little back to these fellow bloggers.  Since today is a free for all day, the comments will be free for all as well.  Feel free to plug your blog, include links, or say anything you’d like.  (I’ll check the spam filter in case any of you get flagged, and push those posts through as I see them.)  I am giving you free reign to advertise you blog, your, website, or you products in today’s comments section!  Have fun!

Vacations are a time for traveling, relaxing, and enjoying sites and amusements.  Sounds blissful, right?  Well, it is, however vacations can often be very stressful too.  Think of all the planning, scheduling, flying, driving, walking, and all the money spent.  I’m stressed just thinking about it!  I thought about this topic on a recent trip to Disney World.  We are lucky enough to live in Central Florida and have annual passes to the Disney parks.  We often see families consumed by anger and rage during various parts of the day.  The most recent occurred at lunch time at the Crystal Palace, a buffet style restaurant at Disney’s Magic Kingdom.  The mom yelled to her daughter “I didn’t pay twelve dollars so you could eat grapes!”  A definite case of money related vacation stress.  I’ve seen parents full on yelling and spanking/slapping/beating their kids.  In an effort to “save the children” and make things easier on the entire family, I’m offering these tips that I have practiced when frequenting the theme parks.   While these tips are specifically geared around theme park vacations, most also apply to vacations to any destination.

Plan

My number one recommendation is to have a good plan.  Make out a schedule of what you’d like to accomplish and include times and locations.  Write it down and communicate this plan with the family so that everyone buys in to the plan.  When planning account for travel time and realize that some events require you to arrive early.  This is especially true for shows and parades at the theme parks.  Figure out ahead of time which rides/shows you or the kids are most interested in, and hit those first.  Also, plan to stand in lines… many, many lines.

Be Flexible

Understand that the perfect plan you just made may not work out.  There are so many variables when visiting theme parks it’s practically impossible to account for everything.  You may be amazed at how long it takes to just enter the park.  Then once you’re in, you have to walk great distances to arrive at your intended ride/show/destination within the park.  Also realize that you won’t likely complete everything you intended to.  Make sure you hit your favorite rides/shows first, so that you don’t end up disappointed if you run out of time later in the day.

Proper footwear and clothing

This is a personal pet peeve of mine.  I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen someone in high heels, unsupportive flip flops, long sleeves, or all black.  You’re at a theme park; much of your time will be spent outside in the heat, and you will walk a lot.  Dress for the weather.  Cold or hot, dress appropriately.  Wear good supportive shoes.  I read somewhere that an average theme park visitor will walk ten miles a day.  Try ten miles in high heels, and tell me how your feet feel.

Budget

This is a tough one for most of us.  Vacations are expensive and put a strain on the budget; especially theme park vacations.  Decide how much you are willing to spend, both in total, and daily.  Budget all your meals, and plan for some snacks and drinks throughout the day.  Everything at theme parks is expensive; from the hotels to entry tickets to food.  Plan for these expenses ahead of time so that you are comfortable with the costs and you don’t have to worry about the money.

Eat

This may sound obvious, but try to eat meals at your normal intervals.  Don’t put off eating to squeeze in another ride.  I know nothing makes me more irritable than to be operating on an empty stomach.  Some theme parks offer meal plans.  This may be a good option to help with the budget and meal planning.

Bring Drinks and Snacks

Most theme parks will allow you to bring in your own snacks and drinks.  Take advantage of this and bring some snacks for the family.  It’s also a very good idea to bring bottled water, especially in the warmer climates.  It’s pretty easy to get dehydrated walking around all day in the hot sun.  By bringing in your own water can save some money and save the hassle of waiting in lines for drinks.  Even if you don’t bring your own, it’s still a good idea to take a break and have a snack, which brings me to the next item.

Take a break

Walking all day will wear you out.  Throw in the heat, long lines, and crowds, and you’ll needs some down time.  Most theme parks have a kid’s area or a play area of some sort.  These are great spots for the parents to sit down for a few minutes, while the kids stay entertained.  As you are walking through the park, make note of the quiet shady areas.  I’ve found several nice spots at Magic Kingdom and Epcot that are relatively crowd free and shaded.  These spots are golden in my book, as they are great places to sit down and relax for a few minutes.

Take a nap

If you are staying at a nearby hotel, you may consider heading back to the room for a nap.  Early afternoon after lunch would be a good time.   This is the hottest and busiest time of the day.  During the summer months, most parks are open late, so you’ll have plenty of time to get back to the fun.

Remember you’re on vacation!

My final recommendation is to remember that this is a vacation!  You are here to enjoy yourself and have a good time with your family.  If you feel the stress level rising, take a deep breath and remember why you are here!

Do you have a vacation stress story you’d like to share?  Or perhaps you have more recommendations on stress free vacationing.  I’d love to hear from you in the comments section.

Photo by Robert D Bruce.
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