Holidays
EASTER BUNNY MUST BE HURTIN’
26/03/16 22:04
Woke up Saturday with a plan. Easter egg hunt at 9:00am. Not easy to do after a beer hunt the night before. Silly rabbit.
Forgot the Easter basket. Where’s a grocery bag? Ding. Got it. Let’s go honey. Let’s go Conor. That bunny waits for no one at the Quincy Nazarene Church.
300 kids. That’s a lot of competition for some eggs. That Easter bunny must be in a lot of pain. Conor ties his running shoes. Damn, we forgot his helmet.
The whistle blows. The kids charge. No elbowing. No tripping. No crying. I was hoping for a little more drama. No, not really.
Conor checked his bag. Thrilled. Easter booty from the Easter bunny is worth waking up for. Even if he did whine the whole way here.
“Here dad, hold my stuff, I see a bouncy house.” Conor ran off with his friends. Wish I could find a bouncy couch. And take a nap.
Wait, what? We have to rush to ice skating lessons after an ambitious Easter egg hunt? What? Oh yes, here it is in my calendar.
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CHRISTMAS IN AUSTIN
25/12/15 22:47
2015 is almost over. We are dizzy from recent events. “I know, let’s go to Texas and see the family and try and relax,” I suggested.
Our 4-year old was on-board. My wife was, too. My family in Texas thought it was a fantastic idea. And Jetblue thought so, too.
My family caught us like a safety net below a trapeze artist. It felt good to be scooped up just before our faces hit the proverbial floor.
My Mom fed us lunch. My sister fed us dinner. Our exhaustion began to dissipate. We were loved. And it felt good.
Conor hugged on his grandmom. My sister hugged on my wife. And I hugged anyone that would hug me. Whew.
We visited the old haunts. Sister Ko introduced us to the new haunts. And Conor was loud enough to scare all the haunts.
Santa was good with his presents to Conor. And my wife and I were just happy to lean on each other instead of trading presents.
After filling our coffers with enough love to sustain us a couple of weeks or months, it was time to say goodbye.
My mom and I had a few quiet moments to share our truest feelings. And made a pact to be closer. That’s what love is.
My sister has always believed in me and I guess at this point, she’ll never stop. What a tremendous gift from a sister to her brother.
And my wife? Well, she signed up for all this and she keeps coming back for more. That’s love.
Merry Christmas, ya’ll.
THE FARTING DOORSTEP IN IRELAND
25/12/12 13:58
Merry Christmas from Ireland. Although my son doesn't seem to know Christmas from Halloween at this stage of his life. He was more impressed with the door stop behind the door that makes farting sounds than he was of Santa's reindeer making a clamor on the rooftop. Just the same, Merry Christmas.
CHRISTMAS SHOPPING WITH A ONE-YEAR OLD
18/12/12 14:10
Ah, come on, Christmas shopping with a child? That's a recipe for disaster. Unless you just make a game out of it. Mom shopped while Conor and I amused ourselves. Tiny Elton John had a great time and the holiday shoppers got a kick out of us, too. It's great being a dad!
CONOR'S FIRST TRICK OR TREAT HALLOWEEN
31/10/12 14:31
It's been awhile since I've enjoyed a good Halloween. Years ago, I used to scare the little kids who came to our door when I lived in Atlanta. But I stopped one year and never got back in the spirit. This year was fun all over again. Instead of scaring kids, my wife and I took our one-year old out to do some of our own trick or treating. True, he's too young to eat the candy. But it's a great way to meet the neighbors that we never seem to have the time to get out and meet. And a great way for Conor to practice being an extravert. We started with the new neighbors next door from Russia. They're really nice and Conor enjoyed picking through their candy. Then we went over to another neighbor and they invited us in for pizza and beer. We accepted their kind offer and hung out with them for awhile. then, as a group, we all headed out for some more trick or treating. We met a nice couple who had just moved in a couple of weeks earlier. Conor was a hit wherever we went. I would set him loose on their porch and he would walk up to the door. He can't really talk yet so there was no 'trick or treat.' No one expected him to talk anyhow, he's so little. Everyone laughed and gave him candy that he couldn't really eat. There was a particular house that I always thought was beautiful so I told Val we should go trick or treat them and get a look at the inside. When we trick or treated her and introduced ourselves as neighbors, (we live a few blocks away), she actually invited us on a tour of her house. So we took her up on her offer and got to see the whole thing. This Halloween was a great one and it's good to be back in the swing of enjoying the holidays with all the joy that they're meant to bring. Happy Halloween!
DAD GOES CURLING ON EASTER SUNDAY
08/04/12 17:54