The Day of Rest???

I don't know what it was like in biblical times, but Sunday is not a day of rest for this modern day dad. Sunday is a day of catch up or get buried on Monday! This is because Saturday is a day of yard work and sports.

Watching my children play sports is one of my favorite past times, so I spent most of Saturday watching my oldest daughter play in a volleyball tournament. Doing yard work is one of my least favorite past times, but I still had to spend the rest of the day mowing, trimming and cleaning.

My children also have a favorite past time which happens to be creating messes. So after being preoccupied for most of Saturday and collapsing into my lazy boy at the end of the day. I awoke Sunday morning to the following mess. We will call these the "before" pictures.

Then I spent 3 hours cleaning up. Which is thrilling since my house doesn't have air conditioning and it is about 85 degrees inside. My children helped out by cleaning their rooms and my son volunteered to vacuum downstairs. And thus we have the "after" pictures!

I'm so glad that's done! Now I can focus on the true purpose of Sunday...

LAUNDRY!!!!!!!

Parenting Alone

The term Single Parent is often not sufficient to describe what we do. "Parenting Alone" does a much better job of capturing the essence of single parents. It's not the same as loneliness which is often present. It is more a feeling of responsibility for raising these children and having nobody to lean on for emotional support.

In a good marriage parenting is a team effort. Even if one parent carries most of the load, they have the other parent there for emotional and intellectual support. But when you are parenting alone you feel the full weight of this awesome responsibility.

Tonight I am feeling very alone. The kids are starting school tomorrow and my son Gibson is in the 7th grade. Junior High School!!! That's such a big change in a child's life and a real social transition. I got the kids off to bed and Gibson came back upstairs so I asked him if something was wrong. He said "No...I just wanted to say goodnight." And I could tell it was more than that, so I gave him a hug and we talked a bit about his day. Then he went downstairs to bed and I just stood there overcome with emotion.

I often wonder if I'm doing enough for my kids. If I'm providing for all their needs. Not just their physical needs, but their emotional needs as well. I'm their dad...and as much as I try I can never replace the role of a mom. It's obvious how much my daughter craves that female influence, but I don't always notice how much my son needs it as well. Except on nights like tonight when I try to fill both roles, but realize that I'm parenting alone.

Emma's World

Emma: "Dad...I colored this picture for you."

Dad: "Thank You Sweetie!!!"

Emma: "Dad...you're holding it upside down."

Dad: "Oh...sorry honey. It's beautiful! Thank You!"

Emma: "You're welcome."

Emma's World

Recently we went on a trip to California so the kids could have a vacation before school starts. I put suitcases in their rooms so I could start packing when the laundry was finished. Emma decided to take matters into her own hands and pack her own suit case.

The following is a sampling of what she packed:

1. An old lunch box full of sea shells from our last trip to California.
2. A tape measure. (don't ask me???)
3. Her entire Pokemon collection.
4. Her Unicorn figurine.
5. A spiral of lined paper and a pencil.

The following is a list of what she didn't pack:

1. Shoes
2. Socks
3. Underwear
4. Swimsuit
5. Toothbrush

J.O.B.

I have been trying to make a career change for quite some time now and I can honestly say that it is the most frustrating process I have ever experienced. When I'm frustrated, depressed or in need of therapy I turn to my guitar and write a song. And so here is my musical expression of my experience with trying to find a new job.