The past couple of weeks have eerily reminded of the comic strip Family Circus. I know we all remember it. It was the comic that followed a family, (I am always one to point out the obvious) a dad, mom, 2 boys and a girl, through their day to day lives. It was filled with funny little thoughts or things that were said.
It also had 2 recurring characters that I didn’t understand at the time, but now have seen come to life in my own realm. It’s been a little weird. Do you remember, “Not me,” and “Ida Know?” They were the ghosts that would do all the wrong things. Inevitably the mom or dad would ask the kids how something happened, who broke what, or whatever, and the kids would respond, “Ida Know,” or “Not me.”
This was personified in my son and you probably have read my entry about the Pee Bandit. I am glad that the culprit wasn’t a ghost, and thankfully, Jack has been doing better about not peeing on the floor too. Other examples of these friendly ghosts pop up all the time too whether it’s: Mysterious crayon on the walls/doors/carpeting/furniture, cushions thrown off of the furniture and onto the floor, milk spilled on the kitchen table, a handprint of purple paint on the wall heading up the stairs, all of the drawers on both dressers being wide open and every bit of clothing on the floor, or finally “Who tooted?”
Other examples of Family Circus have popped up too. Take for instance this illustration. Does it look familiar?
That is Jack, he may go by Jeffery or Billy in the comic, but that is definitely my son.
I spent about 20 minutes perusing the internet looking up different Family Circus comics that were posted online and found that almost all of them made a lot more sense now that I am a parent. I only hope that one day; I will be able to make sense of my children.
I don’t think there is anything better in my life right now, than taking my daughter to school, and the subsequent tradition that has developed for Jack and I. I don’t know when or how we got started doing this, but I don’t really care either, because it is what helps me to get through a sometimes monotonous day filled with, “Play with this toy,” or “I’m hungry/thirsty,” or “I want to watch Diego.” Don’t get me wrong, I love staying at home and raising my son; it is really fulfilling, and Jack is such a fun little guy that is growing physically and intellectually everyday.
A couple of weeks ago, we drove to the elementary school to drop off Lucy, which should tell you two things. 1. We were running late, because the school is only 3 blocks away and we could easily walk there. 2. It had been a rough morning. Both of which were definitely true on that day. Lucy had woken up at 6, and decided she didn’t want to be alone, so she woke up Bumby as well. Now, both kids are up, which means that at least 1 adult needs to be up too; otherwise pure pandemonium can ensue before anyone is the wiser.
By the time it was ready to leave for school, only Lucy had eaten breakfast and Jack had already experienced 3 separate meltdowns. I needed to do something to shake things up and get his day off to a better start; so, I decided to do donuts. Not just any donuts, although lately it has just been the little chocolate covered Hostess donuts from Speedway, but real donuts for Busken Bakery. Jack loves the chocolate glazed ones, and I will get a chocolate glazed, custard filled donut. We will sit in their little eating area and eat our donuts and drink our milk. It is a precious time, just the two of us.
Today, we went to Speedway. We parked and headed across the parking lot to the door. Jack is holding my hand and then he starts to gallop. After a few strides he looks up at me smiles and says, “Daddy you do it.” So Bumby and I galloped to the door. People looked at us funny and then they smiled big, appreciative smiles. Hopefully they were reliving fond memories, while my son and I made our own.
It doesn’t matter to me whether we go to Busken Bakery or to Speedway, the tradition is there and once or twice a week, Jack and I make special memories and have conversations about trains, what he wants to do today, his best friends (the list seems to grow exponentially and often includes the neighbor’s dog), house church, church, the speckled store, his bike, or his Mommy (who he loves very, very mucher), and his sister (who he only loves sometimes).
What I like the most about this tradition, is inspiring the people I meet to remember a time when life was simpler and to smile as they recall those precious memories. One day, I hope that Jack will be able to share the same types of memories with his children. I know that as long as my mind is solid, it will be one of the traditions that I cherish the most.
Today has been an interesting day to say the least. I woke up with a migraine; made waffles for breakfast (for Lucy and Jack); got Lucy off to school, spoke with my Mom on the phone (a daily occurrence); had a friend over for more waffles; and then played super sleuth.
“Super Sleuth,” you ask? Yes, super sleuth. It all started about 2 weeks ago. We had been in our new house for about 2 weeks and noticed that for some reason, our bathroom already smelled like urine. Other than the smell being totally gross, we disinfected the floor and solved the problem. No more smell. Well, last week, the smell was back.
Occasionally, we would notice puddles on the floor in the general toilet area, but neither kid would admit that they missed the pot. So we would snag a towel, wipe it up, then disinfect it (the floor and towel). This morning, while I am eating waffles with Andy, Jack has to go potty. So he runs up the stairs, and then 30 seconds later he is sliding back down them, without flushing or washing his hands; oh, and without shorts or underwear. I got clothes back on Jack before he hit the bottom step and all was good, or so I thought.
After Andy left, I had to use the facilities, so upstairs I head; get to the door and lo and behold, but what do I see, a big golden puddle. Evidentially the Pee Bandit had struck again. So now, I have to clean and disinfect the floor before I can use the facilities. Arghh!
This afternoon, while I was attempting to write a totally different entry, I hear Jack come bounding up the stairs. Then I hear the distinct noise of water dripping on the floor. I'm thinking, "Yes, the Pee Bandit. I can finally catch him in the act." By the time I make it into the bathroom, Jack is standing by the toilet, shorts around his ankles, surrounded by urine that has made a line from the top of the stairs, across the carpeting, into the bathroom and gathered into a puddle the size of Lake Superior.
“Jack, did you pee on the floor?” “It wasn’t me, Daddy. I didn’t do it.” “Jack, it’s only you and Daddy that are home and Daddy didn’t make this mess. Did you do it?” “Yes, Daddy, I sorry.” “That’s ok, Bumby, just get all of your pee in the potty next time, ok?” “Ok, Daddy.”
Pee Bandit mystery solved. Now, if only I could solve how to get him further than the top of the stairs before he starts whizzing.
This morning, I was unceremoniously booted from using the computer by Jack. I typically don’t have an issue with this, but today is Monday, which means that all of the weekend sports analysts will have their articles posted online. I was just sitting down and getting ready to read “Monday Morning Quarterback,” by Peter King on SI.com. He’s a great writer and covers lots of different angles, brings out good story lines, and by in large, a throw back reporter that still knows how to report and not create stories. Needless to say, I was very excited about reading his latest installment.
It just wasn’t in the cards today. Jack wanted cuddle time. Then Jack wanted wiggle time. Followed by tickle time, then by him asking, “Is it my turn on the ‘puter?” “No, Jack. It’s still Daddy’s turn. When I am finished, then you can play Diego.” 30 seconds more of squirming and worming on my lap, and I was more than ready to just relinquish control of the mouse. I was done. Jack had won. I was relegated to the first floor of our house, where I could do 1 of 2 things. I could either do housework, umm, NO; or I could try to find something to watch on TV. I settled for the latter.
It didn’t take me long to realize that 9 AM is not a prime time for watching television. I was stuck either watching the last hour of the Today Show, Regis and Kelly, Dr.’s, Jerry Springer, or court TV. Ouch! What a brutal selection. Regis was out of the studio today so there was a guest host, Randy Jackson from American Idol fame. After 10 seconds of the Dog and Blondie show, I knew it wasn’t for me.
I started to surf again. Still, the same old crap to choose from, and nothing was sticking. On the off chance, I tried a local station, that during the afternoon often runs an old Roy Rogers flick, and came across another Court TV show, Eye for an Eye. The judge is a snarky, arrogant guy and “presides with a baseball bat rather than a gavel.” What ensued was just pure pandemonium. I have no idea what the case was about, and I doubt the judge did either, because when he asked the first witness why they were there today, he climbed out of his cage and started to get into a physical confrontation with the defendant. After several attempts to gain control of the courtroom, the judge finally said, “I have no clue what this case is about, and from the looks of it, neither of you care. So, if you want to fight, then go fight. I order you to a boxing match. Winner gets $300.”
Both guys, way over weight and out of shape proceeded to box? and dodge one another for 3 rounds. Oh, did I mention that the commentator during all of this was Kato Kaelin? It was obnoxious at best, and totally unwatchable.
Is watching these types of shows how we feel better about ourselves? “Yeah, I’m messed up, but I am not as messed up as they are, so I have to be doing alright.” In the movie, Fighclub, the main character attends support groups, not because he needs them, but so he feels something. Is this what we are left with? Watching other people’s lives unravel before our eyes and choosing a side?
And honestly, is watching this doing anyone a bit of good? Can we say that we are better for watching a show that airs the depravity of man? No solutions are ever given. No remorse is ever shown, and it just continues to show the steady moral decline of a civilization and world. When will we see something creative and constructive instead of blatant escapism and depravity?
I know that in a world full of injustices and hardships that we see and hear about everyday, many people are crying out and seeking justice. There is a reason that Law and Order has been on for over a decade and that the CSI’s are so popular. Everything is nice and neat and a crime is solved in 1 hour. Wouldn’t it be nice if real life were like that? Crisis averted, humanity saved, and justice served. I just wish I didn’t have to watch “justice” being served on countless channels and witness it pandering to a crowd rather than to a legitimate court.
Today, my son, Jack, and I were playing. He is a very active 3 yr. old and is very much boy, so we play with trains. A LOT! Today he wanted to play trains while I was typing on the computer, no big deal right? Wrong.
He wants to sit on my lap and use the desktop as his “train track.” I am now relegated to surfing the web instead of writing my blog for the day. No big deal, I wasn’t making much progress on it anyway. So now, I am surfing my normal haunt of sites: facebook, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and CNN. The sites have nothing of importance, just mundane things that fill up time in my day.
It is at this point, that Jack informs me, “Dad! You broke my track!” To which I respond, “No I didn’t.” “Sure you did; I saw you. You can’t lie to me. You get a consequence.” “How about I just help you fix your track instead?” “OK, Daddy.”
Come to find out, all that was wrong was that my hand was sitting on the desktop and blocking his trains from making a full circuit around the keyboard. Who would have known?
On the other front, Lucy is at a very exciting point in her young life. I received a phone call from the guidance counselor at her elementary school today. After getting over the initial, “Is my child ok?” moment, I learned that they have been giving Lucy various placement and reading tests. Lucy has scored really high in all of the tests. Long story short, they want her to skip a grade level because she is reading at a 5th grade level as a kindergartener.
While I am very excited about the opportunity for Lucy and that the school is looking out for her, I am concerned and worried too. Lucy doesn’t transition well. She can be very emotional, and she doesn’t take teasing or picking very good either. I am glad that academically she is going to be taken care of, but socially I am concerned.
In the next week or so, we will have a meeting with her current teacher, and the guidance counselor to discuss Lucy’s options. It is going to be a very trying time and a great time of adjustment.
Most of all Lucy’s experiences at school and Jack’s at home are going to continue to show me that I am on a learning curve too.
It’s been weird. For a little over a year, I have been a stay at home dad, taking care of Lucy (5) and Jack (3). Last year Lucy was in pre-school in the afternoon from 12-3. Jack would typically fall asleep for his nap on the way there or the way home, so I would have about 1 hour to myself. Well, in April, Jack decided he was done with naps, so I no longer had that free time.
Now, Lucy is in kindergarten from 8-3, so it is just Jack and I all day. It has been really good. If you ask his mom, she would tell you that he is very much a daddy’s boy right now. He wants to be with me all the time. In fact, the other day I was heading upstairs to go to the restroom. Jack says, “Daddy, where you going?” “I’m going to the bathroom, Jack.” “To go pee?” “Yes, Jack, to go pee.” “Can I go pee with you because that would be really awesome?” Honestly, how can you say no to that? In sharing this story with friends, most of which don’t have children, I got a lot of weird looks and long pauses in the conversation. Yeah, I suppose it would be weird too, but being a parent introduces you to new weird things everyday.
While I am typically able to accomplish a lot more during the day because of only having 1 kid at home, it has been weird too. I miss my daughter. She has grown up so much in the last month of school. She is doing really well and will most likely be bumped up a grade level for reading. Our biggest concern about her being too emotional or easily hurt hasn’t been realized yet. She hasn’t had any issues and has made lots of new friends. Now if we can just keep her from getting head lice, we will be great!
Today is laundry day. “Wednesday, wash day,” is what the kids and I call it. It’s a rainy day, so I suppose doing laundry is as good as anything. Besides, with a little helper like Jack, who likes to use his dozers (his hands) to push the wet clothes into the drier, how can doing laundry be anything but good?
Hello friends and family, and soon to be friends,I just wanted to get something written to get things going. I am doing well, but I want to spend more time writing my thoughts down. I have a little more time now that my daughter is in kindergarten and it is only my son and I at home. It is so much easier with only one child at home compared to two! Hopefully I will be able to use the "extra time" constructively by getting all of my regular things done like laundry and dishes, as well as continuing my new addiction of Facebooking, and now blogging. For now, I need to run and check on the 2 kids since they are both down stairs doing who knows what while I type this out.... I hope to see you soon, or talk soon.Brad
