Letters from Dad: #25

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Hi Kids!

Daddy here. Have we been having some amazing adventures lately or what? Sometimes we feel like we never stop moving. You all are growing so big and conquering more and more milestones everyday. We are going out in public more and more, and you kids are doing so great at behaving incredibly well. Mommy and I are proud of you!

I hope we accomplish great things this summer. In summers past, we have made lists of all the things we plan on doing over the summer. This summer, Mommy and Daddy will be awfully busy. We will make the most of every chance we get, but we will probably stay pretty close to home except when we are adventuring. I hope you are ready to do some traveling. Road trips are in your future! Remember when we went to St. Louis to visit Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa? I hope you will have as much fun on our travel adventures this summer as you had on that trip.

Maybe we’ll do some swimming this summer! Maybe some painting! Definitely some ice cream! Probably do some yard work! Hopefully Daddy slims down by 30 or more lbs. It doesn’t matter what we end up doing, children. What matters is that we will be together, and we love each other.

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Hi Kids!

Daddy here. Have we been having some amazing adventures lately or what? Sometimes we feel like we never stop moving. You all are growing so big and conquering more and more milestones everyday. We are going out in public more and more, and you kids are doing so great at behaving incredibly well. Mommy and I are proud of you!

I hope we accomplish great things this summer. In summers past, we have made lists of all the things we plan on doing over the summer. This summer, Mommy and Daddy will be awfully busy. We will make the most of every chance we get, but we will probably stay pretty close to home except when we are adventuring. I hope you are ready to do some traveling. Road trips are in your future! Remember when we went to St. Louis to visit Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa? I hope you will have as much fun on our travel adventures this summer as you had on that trip.

Maybe we’ll do some swimming this summer! Maybe some painting! Definitely some ice cream! Probably do some yard work! Hopefully Daddy slims down by 30 or more lbs. It doesn’t matter what we end up doing, children. What matters is that we will be together, and we love each other.

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Letters from Dad: #24

Dear Kids,

This month let’s just pray. I have a lot on my heart right now, and I think that's probably the best place to go with this post.

Dear God,

I want so badly for my kids to live in an area where I don’t have to worry about them getting hurt or killed. The news reports from surrounding neighbors are sobering as I hear about another child who has been killed. It’s a week until Easter. The day that we remember how Your Son Jesus was tortured and killed, yet here I sit in my comfortable house and selfishly want my kids to have a good education and a safe environment.

I know I'm not the only parent who wants this for his kids. God, what can I do for this city? What can I do so that kids throughout the world can have a safe education? This problem is much bigger than just our family. A lot of people have switched to homeschooling. Maybe in a few years, I’ll be there. Right now, I don’t think I can provide the structure and therapy that the children need to develop.

God, You have provided for my family. You have taken care of our physical needs. I know that You will dispel my mental worries. These concerns will go away as I turn the details over to You.

Thank you for Your Son and Your Love. 

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Dear Kids,

This month let’s just pray. I have a lot on my heart right now, and I think that's probably the best place to go with this post.

Dear God,

I want so badly for my kids to live in an area where I don’t have to worry about them getting hurt or killed. The news reports from surrounding neighbors are sobering as I hear about another child who has been killed. It’s a week until Easter. The day that we remember how Your Son Jesus was tortured and killed, yet here I sit in my comfortable house and selfishly want my kids to have a good education and a safe environment.

I know I'm not the only parent who wants this for his kids. God, what can I do for this city? What can I do so that kids throughout the world can have a safe education? This problem is much bigger than just our family. A lot of people have switched to homeschooling. Maybe in a few years, I’ll be there. Right now, I don’t think I can provide the structure and therapy that the children need to develop.

God, You have provided for my family. You have taken care of our physical needs. I know that You will dispel my mental worries. These concerns will go away as I turn the details over to You.

Thank you for Your Son and Your Love. 

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Letters from Dad: #23

Dear Children!

You made it to your 4^th birthday! Congratulations!

It still blows my mind that you all have survived. Crazy journey. Very emotional. Lots of laugher, lots of frustration. All of it good. I’m so happy to have you four in our lives. Everyone is growing so much, not just physically, but spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.

Elizabeth is still the second little mama. The only thing that stops her is her size. She wants to grow so big but says she hates food. Little girl needs to realize that she needs food to grow.

Elijah is a sweet boy and looks after his siblings. He still needs to slow down. He is too inquisitive sometimes, and we would appreciate it if he would stop talking so much and start listening better. Still, we are glad that he is asking questions and learning.

Caleb is such an ornery, goofy little boy. He loves pulling little antics and running off and giggling. It is hard to get upset at such a sweet spirit. Every day he speaks better and better. He is still lagging behind the other kids, and they are starting to catch on, but they don’t hold it against him. I hope they never do. I know he will catch up soon.

Abby is our little princess. She has a hard time waking up, just like her momma. She loves giving hugs and singing and dancing. Her favorite people are her daddy and all of her grandpas. We went on our first trip to St. Louis last month to visit my grandparents. At least once a week, Abby asks when we will be going back.

We have lucked out with the children we have. They have great manners, not perfect, but really good manners. They are all very sweet. Even their rough edges are easily strengths. I don’t know why God blessed us so. I certainly haven’t done anything to be this lucky.

Children, I pray your next year is full of blessings and that you continue to grow, grow, and grow. 

Happy birthday!

Love,

Daddy

Dear Children!

You made it to your 4^th birthday! Congratulations!

It still blows my mind that you all have survived. Crazy journey. Very emotional. Lots of laugher, lots of frustration. All of it good. I’m so happy to have you four in our lives. Everyone is growing so much, not just physically, but spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.

Elizabeth is still the second little mama. The only thing that stops her is her size. She wants to grow so big but says she hates food. Little girl needs to realize that she needs food to grow.

Elijah is a sweet boy and looks after his siblings. He still needs to slow down. He is too inquisitive sometimes, and we would appreciate it if he would stop talking so much and start listening better. Still, we are glad that he is asking questions and learning.

Caleb is such an ornery, goofy little boy. He loves pulling little antics and running off and giggling. It is hard to get upset at such a sweet spirit. Every day he speaks better and better. He is still lagging behind the other kids, and they are starting to catch on, but they don’t hold it against him. I hope they never do. I know he will catch up soon.

Abby is our little princess. She has a hard time waking up, just like her momma. She loves giving hugs and singing and dancing. Her favorite people are her daddy and all of her grandpas. We went on our first trip to St. Louis last month to visit my grandparents. At least once a week, Abby asks when we will be going back.

We have lucked out with the children we have. They have great manners, not perfect, but really good manners. They are all very sweet. Even their rough edges are easily strengths. I don’t know why God blessed us so. I certainly haven’t done anything to be this lucky.

Children, I pray your next year is full of blessings and that you continue to grow, grow, and grow. 

Happy birthday!

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #22

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dear Children,

I once read that if you want to marry a certain type of woman, then you need to be the type of man that a woman like that would marry. Pretty good advice. Somehow, mommy still married me even though I’m a flawed individual.

A good friend of mine used to say “friends will come and go, but enemies accumulate”. I imagine the advice on how to get the right woman would work the same on how to get the right friends. Be the type of friend that you would like to have. I’m not the best at being a good friend, and yet, somehow daddy manages to have friends. Daddy has really great friends actually.

I’m often telling you to be good to one another. I think this is one of the first things one should do to be a good friend. Sometimes, you’ll need to be nice to people who aren't nice to you. Sometimes it sucks, but it’s just the way it is.

Try to be good to people, kids. It’s good to have friends. You never know when you might need someone in your corner. Also, try to live this song.

Love,

Daddy

⁸ There was a man all alone;

    he had neither son nor brother.

There was no end to his toil,

    yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.

“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,

    “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”

This too is meaningless—

    a miserable business!

    because they have a good return for their labor:

¹⁰ If either of them falls down,

    one can help the other up.

But pity anyone who falls

    and has no one to help them up.

¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.

    But how can one keep warm alone?

¹² Though one may be overpowered,

    two can defend themselves.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

⁹ Two are better than one,

--Ecclesiastes 4:8-12

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dear Children,

I once read that if you want to marry a certain type of woman, then you need to be the type of man that a woman like that would marry. Pretty good advice. Somehow, mommy still married me even though I’m a flawed individual.

A good friend of mine used to say “friends will come and go, but enemies accumulate”. I imagine the advice on how to get the right woman would work the same on how to get the right friends. Be the type of friend that you would like to have. I’m not the best at being a good friend, and yet, somehow daddy manages to have friends. Daddy has really great friends actually.

I’m often telling you to be good to one another. I think this is one of the first things one should do to be a good friend. Sometimes, you’ll need to be nice to people who aren't nice to you. Sometimes it sucks, but it’s just the way it is.

Try to be good to people, kids. It’s good to have friends. You never know when you might need someone in your corner. Also, try to live this song.

Love,

Daddy

⁸ There was a man all alone;

    he had neither son nor brother.

There was no end to his toil,

    yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.

“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,

    “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”

This too is meaningless—

    a miserable business!

    because they have a good return for their labor:

¹⁰ If either of them falls down,

    one can help the other up.

But pity anyone who falls

    and has no one to help them up.

¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.

    But how can one keep warm alone?

¹² Though one may be overpowered,

    two can defend themselves.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

⁹ Two are better than one,

--Ecclesiastes 4:8-12

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Letters from Dad: #21

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

This might seem like a strange post to publish on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year's, but it makes sense to me. The beginning of a new year is a prompt to change things, and we are looking at a move in our future which will be a big change for us! It may not happen this year, but it will probably happen in the next 18 months. Plus, this topic is weighing heavily on us right now as we've had a difficult semester with the kids' school. Please pray for our family as we try to find a good, safe place for our family in a school district that treats teachers, parents, and students with excellence.

Dear Kids,

Sometimes you have to tackle the hard questions in life such as “How ought one live”? This is an important question, and I hope you ponder it often so that you don’t live an unexamined life and end up wasting it.

However, the question we are tackling this month is, “Where should we live?” There are a lot of factors that go into this decision. The biggest factor we are looking at is where is the best place for our children to live?” We want to make sure that you have a quality education and also have an opportunity to go to a school in a safe environment. It makes Mommy and Daddy very sad that not every child has the opportunity to receive a quality education or can go to school in a safe environment. (I blame society, which means I also blame myself.) The district in which we currently live has a great early childhood program. Unfortunately, kindergarten on up gets really dicey.

Also, every day that you go to school, you drive past two 7-11 gas stations. 7-11’s in and of themselves are not bad things, however, these two are known for being frequent crime scenes. Only a few weeks ago, a little girl was shot at one while buying a pack of bubblegum with her daddy. A girl not much older than you four. There is a Sonic not a quarter mile from there that I have taken you kids to a few times. What if one of those trigger happy people had decided to shoot up Sonic? I say not to live your life in fear, and I do truly try, but I love you, babies.

All this is to say that eventually, we will have to move or enroll you in private school or homeschool. It’s a big decision, and one that we don’t take lightly.

All of these options have their pluses and minuses, so we will probably talk about those one day in a future post. Moving seems to be the most considered option to Mommy and Daddy. We still don’t know where. One step (or dream) at a time. Also, what can the pocket book afford?

Factors that will go into our decision:

·         --Schools

·         --Yard—Daddy would like to start a garden and plant a peach tree (because he loves peaches)

Will we stay in the Kansas City area?  Who knows…? Mommy grew up in New Mexico. Daddy grew up in KC. Shortly after Mommy and Daddy were married, we visited Colorado and thought it was gorgeous. Daddy has contemplating living somewhere rural like Louisburg, Harrisonville, or Burlington. Daddy also applied for a job a couple of years ago in the Pacific Northwest.

Family and friends are important as we have pointed out many times, but as the poet says “Home is wherever we are, if there’s love there to.” You obviously have a couple of uncles and one aunt that moved away so it can be possible. Also, if Mommy had never moved from her childhood home then you kiddos would not have existed.

So in short, Daddy and Mommy are praying and thinking about moving by the time you enter kindergarten to make sure that you have a good, safe, educational experience. I just wanted you to know how much you mean to your Daddy and Mommy, and that we would do anything for our precious babies.

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

This might seem like a strange post to publish on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year's, but it makes sense to me. The beginning of a new year is a prompt to change things, and we are looking at a move in our future which will be a big change for us! It may not happen this year, but it will probably happen in the next 18 months. Plus, this topic is weighing heavily on us right now as we've had a difficult semester with the kids' school. Please pray for our family as we try to find a good, safe place for our family in a school district that treats teachers, parents, and students with excellence.

Dear Kids,

Sometimes you have to tackle the hard questions in life such as “How ought one live”? This is an important question, and I hope you ponder it often so that you don’t live an unexamined life and end up wasting it.

However, the question we are tackling this month is, “Where should we live?” There are a lot of factors that go into this decision. The biggest factor we are looking at is where is the best place for our children to live?” We want to make sure that you have a quality education and also have an opportunity to go to a school in a safe environment. It makes Mommy and Daddy very sad that not every child has the opportunity to receive a quality education or can go to school in a safe environment. (I blame society, which means I also blame myself.) The district in which we currently live has a great early childhood program. Unfortunately, kindergarten on up gets really dicey.

Also, every day that you go to school, you drive past two 7-11 gas stations. 7-11’s in and of themselves are not bad things, however, these two are known for being frequent crime scenes. Only a few weeks ago, a little girl was shot at one while buying a pack of bubblegum with her daddy. A girl not much older than you four. There is a Sonic not a quarter mile from there that I have taken you kids to a few times. What if one of those trigger happy people had decided to shoot up Sonic? I say not to live your life in fear, and I do truly try, but I love you, babies.

All this is to say that eventually, we will have to move or enroll you in private school or homeschool. It’s a big decision, and one that we don’t take lightly.

All of these options have their pluses and minuses, so we will probably talk about those one day in a future post. Moving seems to be the most considered option to Mommy and Daddy. We still don’t know where. One step (or dream) at a time. Also, what can the pocket book afford?

Factors that will go into our decision:

·         --Schools

·         --Yard—Daddy would like to start a garden and plant a peach tree (because he loves peaches)

Will we stay in the Kansas City area?  Who knows…? Mommy grew up in New Mexico. Daddy grew up in KC. Shortly after Mommy and Daddy were married, we visited Colorado and thought it was gorgeous. Daddy has contemplating living somewhere rural like Louisburg, Harrisonville, or Burlington. Daddy also applied for a job a couple of years ago in the Pacific Northwest.

Family and friends are important as we have pointed out many times, but as the poet says “Home is wherever we are, if there’s love there to.” You obviously have a couple of uncles and one aunt that moved away so it can be possible. Also, if Mommy had never moved from her childhood home then you kiddos would not have existed.

So in short, Daddy and Mommy are praying and thinking about moving by the time you enter kindergarten to make sure that you have a good, safe, educational experience. I just wanted you to know how much you mean to your Daddy and Mommy, and that we would do anything for our precious babies.

Love,

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Letters from Dad: #20

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dear Children,

Daddy loves to read. At the beginning of the year, Daddy saw a challenge on the internet to keep a record of all of the books read in a year. It is called the Empty Shelf Challenge. If you want to see everything I have read this year, you can click here.

Of all of the books that I’ve read this year, I really enjoyed three books the most. Those three are:

                Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas

                A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

                7: an Experimental Mutiny against Excess by Jen Hatmaker

I’m currently reading 7, so I’m not actually finished, but it’s pretty good so far. It a semi-autobiography that’s about giving up all the crap in our life and focusing on what matters. This is appropriate since Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching. During the holidays, we get so wrapped up in what is happening on any given day, but the truth of the matter is, the only thing that truly matters in life are people. So please try to remember that.

Bonhoeffer is a biography about Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It is very interesting. I took a class on Nazi Germany as part of my graduate degree, but wow, the German people were nuts. I wish I could say I mean that in the best way possible, but I don’t. It really amazes me that Hitler was allowed to rise to power. I think it was mainly due to German pride and the belief that you needed to follow the leader even if you disagreed. I mention the Nazis and the German people because Bonhoeffer was a German pastor during Hitler’s rise to power and opposed him, including being part of the conspiracy to murder Hitler.

A Million Miles is another semi-autobiography. Donald Miller, the author, is most known for the book Blue like Jazz. This book is about an examination of his life. The book documents how a couple of guys decide to make Blue like Jazz into a movie, and the screenwriting that Miller goes through to make his story work on the big screen. Through this he figures out what he wants to do with his life. The thing he decides to do is help people tell their story and not just live a boring life. He and his friends now run the Storyline conference and blog. You can read more about it at www.storylineblog.com.

I’m not saying I expect you kids to read these books. I’m just letting you know the ones that tugged at my heart. Before the year is over, I am hoping to finish up two more Star Wars books and another Jen Hatmaker book. I have my books for next year mapped out also. However, Jen Hatmaker keeps referencing two books that I think I would like to read. One is The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne. The other is Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole by Benjamin R. Barber. I’m thinking both of those books will have to be added to next year’s reading list.

I love reading, kids, and I hope one day you do too. Keep in mind that I’m also kind of a fickle person. If you were to ask me on another day which books I found most interesting this year, I might have given you different answers.

Have a great Thanksgiving kids. Maybe mommy’s readers can drop a note of what books they read this year that they really enjoyed. Daddy might just add them to his future reading list.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dear Children,

Daddy loves to read. At the beginning of the year, Daddy saw a challenge on the internet to keep a record of all of the books read in a year. It is called the Empty Shelf Challenge. If you want to see everything I have read this year, you can click here.

Of all of the books that I’ve read this year, I really enjoyed three books the most. Those three are:

                Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas

                A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

                7: an Experimental Mutiny against Excess by Jen Hatmaker

I’m currently reading 7, so I’m not actually finished, but it’s pretty good so far. It a semi-autobiography that’s about giving up all the crap in our life and focusing on what matters. This is appropriate since Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching. During the holidays, we get so wrapped up in what is happening on any given day, but the truth of the matter is, the only thing that truly matters in life are people. So please try to remember that.

Bonhoeffer is a biography about Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It is very interesting. I took a class on Nazi Germany as part of my graduate degree, but wow, the German people were nuts. I wish I could say I mean that in the best way possible, but I don’t. It really amazes me that Hitler was allowed to rise to power. I think it was mainly due to German pride and the belief that you needed to follow the leader even if you disagreed. I mention the Nazis and the German people because Bonhoeffer was a German pastor during Hitler’s rise to power and opposed him, including being part of the conspiracy to murder Hitler.

A Million Miles is another semi-autobiography. Donald Miller, the author, is most known for the book Blue like Jazz. This book is about an examination of his life. The book documents how a couple of guys decide to make Blue like Jazz into a movie, and the screenwriting that Miller goes through to make his story work on the big screen. Through this he figures out what he wants to do with his life. The thing he decides to do is help people tell their story and not just live a boring life. He and his friends now run the Storyline conference and blog. You can read more about it at www.storylineblog.com.

I’m not saying I expect you kids to read these books. I’m just letting you know the ones that tugged at my heart. Before the year is over, I am hoping to finish up two more Star Wars books and another Jen Hatmaker book. I have my books for next year mapped out also. However, Jen Hatmaker keeps referencing two books that I think I would like to read. One is The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne. The other is Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole by Benjamin R. Barber. I’m thinking both of those books will have to be added to next year’s reading list.

I love reading, kids, and I hope one day you do too. Keep in mind that I’m also kind of a fickle person. If you were to ask me on another day which books I found most interesting this year, I might have given you different answers.

Have a great Thanksgiving kids. Maybe mommy’s readers can drop a note of what books they read this year that they really enjoyed. Daddy might just add them to his future reading list.

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #19

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dearest Children,

This is the moment that you have been waiting for (and Mommy and her readers have been dreading). Which comics you should read first?

First, let’s discuss authors.  Here are Daddy’s favorites, and the particular runs that he loves:

·         Peter David

o   Incredible Hulk

o   X-Factor

o   Supergirl

o   Young Justice

o   Spider-Man

o   Spider-Man 2099

·         Kurt Busiek

o   Avengers

o   Iron Man

o   Spider-Man

o   Thunderbolts

·          Roger Stern

o   Avengers

o   Spider-Man

o   Captain America

o   Iron Man

o   Incredible Hulk

·         Mark Gruenwald

o   Captain America

o   Hawkeye

·         Steve Engelhart

o   Captain America

o   Avengers

o   West Coast Avengers

·         Ed Brubaker

o   Captain America

o   Batman

o   X-Men

·         John Ostrander

o   Star Wars

o   Heroes for Hire

o   Quicksilver

So now you know what authors and their runs I like, so where should you start? If you are looking for comedy (and let’s face it, you’re my children), you’ll want to start with Peter David. Warning, his early run on Spider-Man was more tragic than comedic. I’d start with Young Justice (or as Impulse says “Young Just Us”). It’s geared at a younger audience with the teenage superheroes of Robin, the Secret, Superboy, Impulse, and Wondergirl.

So let’s see what next… you all like Spider-Man so I would then do Kurt Busiek’s Untold Tales of Spider-Man before moving over to Roger Stern’s Spider-Man.

Next, you also love Captain America, so I would just read Daddy’s entire collection.

Other complete runs you should try out are Incredible Hulk, read it up until Peter David leaves, then skip all of the issues until Peter David comes back. The Greg Pak run afterwards is completely solid and so is the Mark Waid run.

Avengers is another title you can’t go wrong with. West Coast Avengers/Avengers West Coast is completely solid. There are a couple fill-in issues but they aren’t smacked in the middle of the story so they don’t take away. It might help if you weave the Avengers and West Coast Avengers in together. Also, when you get to Busiek’s run (skip the heroes reborn action) you’ll want to mix in Iron Man, Thunderbolts, Quicksilver, and Heroes for Hire. All those books are rather enjoyable.

So here is the thing, the authors that I listed have long lengthy runs for their titles. They were dedicated to their characters. Comics aren’t made like that these days. Everything is all limited series, and they want to limit the input that the creators have on the titles. It seems that these days, Marvel plans on relaunching their titles every year, so there isn’t as much cohesiveness.

Nowadays, I get my comics from the library, which means that I’m limited to individual stories instead of runs. That’s okay because comics are mostly written that way nowadays. You just have to realize the shift in how comic books are written over the years.

Maybe you’ll want to read the comics that I love or maybe you won’t. If you do want to read them, we’ll read them and enjoy the stories together. The same way, we snuggle up to watch our cartoons.

I’m glad that we can enjoy life together!

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older! While many of the posts on this blog are written to share our lives with you, the reader, Sean's "Letters from Dad" series is truly written to our kids. You are welcome to peek in and see what he wants them to know!)

Dearest Children,

This is the moment that you have been waiting for (and Mommy and her readers have been dreading). Which comics you should read first?

First, let’s discuss authors.  Here are Daddy’s favorites, and the particular runs that he loves:

·         Peter David

o   Incredible Hulk

o   X-Factor

o   Supergirl

o   Young Justice

o   Spider-Man

o   Spider-Man 2099

·         Kurt Busiek

o   Avengers

o   Iron Man

o   Spider-Man

o   Thunderbolts

·          Roger Stern

o   Avengers

o   Spider-Man

o   Captain America

o   Iron Man

o   Incredible Hulk

·         Mark Gruenwald

o   Captain America

o   Hawkeye

·         Steve Engelhart

o   Captain America

o   Avengers

o   West Coast Avengers

·         Ed Brubaker

o   Captain America

o   Batman

o   X-Men

·         John Ostrander

o   Star Wars

o   Heroes for Hire

o   Quicksilver

So now you know what authors and their runs I like, so where should you start? If you are looking for comedy (and let’s face it, you’re my children), you’ll want to start with Peter David. Warning, his early run on Spider-Man was more tragic than comedic. I’d start with Young Justice (or as Impulse says “Young Just Us”). It’s geared at a younger audience with the teenage superheroes of Robin, the Secret, Superboy, Impulse, and Wondergirl.

So let’s see what next… you all like Spider-Man so I would then do Kurt Busiek’s Untold Tales of Spider-Man before moving over to Roger Stern’s Spider-Man.

Next, you also love Captain America, so I would just read Daddy’s entire collection.

Other complete runs you should try out are Incredible Hulk, read it up until Peter David leaves, then skip all of the issues until Peter David comes back. The Greg Pak run afterwards is completely solid and so is the Mark Waid run.

Avengers is another title you can’t go wrong with. West Coast Avengers/Avengers West Coast is completely solid. There are a couple fill-in issues but they aren’t smacked in the middle of the story so they don’t take away. It might help if you weave the Avengers and West Coast Avengers in together. Also, when you get to Busiek’s run (skip the heroes reborn action) you’ll want to mix in Iron Man, Thunderbolts, Quicksilver, and Heroes for Hire. All those books are rather enjoyable.

So here is the thing, the authors that I listed have long lengthy runs for their titles. They were dedicated to their characters. Comics aren’t made like that these days. Everything is all limited series, and they want to limit the input that the creators have on the titles. It seems that these days, Marvel plans on relaunching their titles every year, so there isn’t as much cohesiveness.

Nowadays, I get my comics from the library, which means that I’m limited to individual stories instead of runs. That’s okay because comics are mostly written that way nowadays. You just have to realize the shift in how comic books are written over the years.

Maybe you’ll want to read the comics that I love or maybe you won’t. If you do want to read them, we’ll read them and enjoy the stories together. The same way, we snuggle up to watch our cartoons.

I’m glad that we can enjoy life together!

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #18

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

I remember one time, Ma (my mom) sat your Uncle Nathan and me down to explain the difference between wants and needs. I don’t remember what the occasion was. Maybe we were starting school, maybe we were being brats, or maybe Ma was just teaching us an important life lesson. It was a good lesson. A need is something you have to have to survive; a want is everything else.

Oh sure, needs can be defined in other ways. For instance, I could say I need Captain America 241 to complete my Captain America collection. But, I don’t need a comic book to survive. I don’t need a comic collection to survive. What we need is food, clothes, shelter and even then some of those are a stretch. People live without clothes and shelter all the time. Maybe not well but they do survive. We need food to survive, but we don’t need filet mignon. Kids, I hope as you get older, I am able to convey the values that Ma gave Uncle Nathan and me. It’s good to know what is important in life and to set your values properly.

I love you kids. We didn’t plan to have four kids at once, but I wouldn’t trade you kiddos for anything.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

I remember one time, Ma (my mom) sat your Uncle Nathan and me down to explain the difference between wants and needs. I don’t remember what the occasion was. Maybe we were starting school, maybe we were being brats, or maybe Ma was just teaching us an important life lesson. It was a good lesson. A need is something you have to have to survive; a want is everything else.

Oh sure, needs can be defined in other ways. For instance, I could say I need Captain America 241 to complete my Captain America collection. But, I don’t need a comic book to survive. I don’t need a comic collection to survive. What we need is food, clothes, shelter and even then some of those are a stretch. People live without clothes and shelter all the time. Maybe not well but they do survive. We need food to survive, but we don’t need filet mignon. Kids, I hope as you get older, I am able to convey the values that Ma gave Uncle Nathan and me. It’s good to know what is important in life and to set your values properly.

I love you kids. We didn’t plan to have four kids at once, but I wouldn’t trade you kiddos for anything.

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #17

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

This month, you started your first full year of full-time preschool. Last year, you went half days, four days a week for a partial semester. This year, you are going full days, five days a week.

The school you are going to is so big compared to your old school. You all walked in, your little 3½-year-old-selves, like it was old hat. Daddy could not have been more proud and yet sad at the same time. Only 3½-years-old, and you little kids are already taking on the world. You kids are so awesome. I wish you could stay young forever and never have to know responsibility, but each day you will learn a little more and a little more.

Already, three of you are doing so well with using the potty. Yes, there are still accidents but you are rocking the whole potty thing. You kids are also doing so well with picking up your toys 70% of the time. And all of you are always so good about offering to help around the house. Caleb loves doing yard work with Daddy. Elijah likes to take the recycling out to the “bicycle man”. Ellie likes being a little “mommy” and helping with the laundry. Abby is always there to give out a hug, a smile, or a song.

I think of each of you throughout my day, and I just smile. All four of you make me so happy.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

This month, you started your first full year of full-time preschool. Last year, you went half days, four days a week for a partial semester. This year, you are going full days, five days a week.

The school you are going to is so big compared to your old school. You all walked in, your little 3½-year-old-selves, like it was old hat. Daddy could not have been more proud and yet sad at the same time. Only 3½-years-old, and you little kids are already taking on the world. You kids are so awesome. I wish you could stay young forever and never have to know responsibility, but each day you will learn a little more and a little more.

Already, three of you are doing so well with using the potty. Yes, there are still accidents but you are rocking the whole potty thing. You kids are also doing so well with picking up your toys 70% of the time. And all of you are always so good about offering to help around the house. Caleb loves doing yard work with Daddy. Elijah likes to take the recycling out to the “bicycle man”. Ellie likes being a little “mommy” and helping with the laundry. Abby is always there to give out a hug, a smile, or a song.

I think of each of you throughout my day, and I just smile. All four of you make me so happy.

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #16

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

First of all, let me apologize for not getting you a letter last month. I don’t have an excuse, and even if I did, it wouldn’t be a good one.

This month has been crazy. A lot of emotions have been going all over the place. Caleb had his heart surgery. The doctors kept telling us it was nothing to worry about, but as a parent, you worry about your kid having any type of surgery, let alone on his heart. Praise God he made it through and has been doing better than ever. He has a lot more energy now.

Unfortunately, while in the recovery room, I received notice that Two-Ma’s (your Great-Grandmother’s) health had taken a turn for the worse and some other bad news. It was a rough day. The day ended up going well. Caleb was full of energy when we got home, and then once he was settled, we were able to see Two-Ma before she made a complete turn for the worse.

We miss Two-Ma. I am having a hard time writing this month. I feel like I’m holding back to not get too emotional. I hope that when I’m done with this letter it makes sense.

You kids feel me with joy and laughter most every day. Around Mother’s Day, I told Two-Ma that Abby had her laugh. So true. Caleb and Ellie have her smile too. It’s hard to say what Elijah has inherited, but sometimes when he asks questions, I swear the look in his eyes reminds me of her.

Kids, my Grandma, loved Jesus. There is no doubt in my mind that she is now with Jesus. I hope so much that I will reflect the same love of Jesus to you kids that she did to everyone she met in her life. 

It was important to her that her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids continue her legacy and not let people forget about her Jesus.

She was a woman full of joy, laughter, and encouragement. Children, laugh and enjoy each day. Look for the good in all situations. That’s the way that your Great-Grandma would have done it.

Stay off the drugs also. While I never recall her explicitly saying to stay off drugs. I know she wasn’t a fan of addictions, unless the addiction was breakfast or laughter! In regards to addictions for other things besides drugs, anything that doesn’t help you or make you a better person needs to be avoided.

Your Two-Ma saw a lot of worth in staying joyful, full of faith, clean from addictions, and full of humor. I think that’s one of the reasons that she lived so long and had such a full life. You can learn a lot of lessons about living life by looking at how she did it.

Kids, sorry this letter has been all over the place, but the lessons I want you to take from it are important.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Children,

First of all, let me apologize for not getting you a letter last month. I don’t have an excuse, and even if I did, it wouldn’t be a good one.

This month has been crazy. A lot of emotions have been going all over the place. Caleb had his heart surgery. The doctors kept telling us it was nothing to worry about, but as a parent, you worry about your kid having any type of surgery, let alone on his heart. Praise God he made it through and has been doing better than ever. He has a lot more energy now.

Unfortunately, while in the recovery room, I received notice that Two-Ma’s (your Great-Grandmother’s) health had taken a turn for the worse and some other bad news. It was a rough day. The day ended up going well. Caleb was full of energy when we got home, and then once he was settled, we were able to see Two-Ma before she made a complete turn for the worse.

We miss Two-Ma. I am having a hard time writing this month. I feel like I’m holding back to not get too emotional. I hope that when I’m done with this letter it makes sense.

You kids feel me with joy and laughter most every day. Around Mother’s Day, I told Two-Ma that Abby had her laugh. So true. Caleb and Ellie have her smile too. It’s hard to say what Elijah has inherited, but sometimes when he asks questions, I swear the look in his eyes reminds me of her.

Kids, my Grandma, loved Jesus. There is no doubt in my mind that she is now with Jesus. I hope so much that I will reflect the same love of Jesus to you kids that she did to everyone she met in her life. 

It was important to her that her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids continue her legacy and not let people forget about her Jesus.

She was a woman full of joy, laughter, and encouragement. Children, laugh and enjoy each day. Look for the good in all situations. That’s the way that your Great-Grandma would have done it.

Stay off the drugs also. While I never recall her explicitly saying to stay off drugs. I know she wasn’t a fan of addictions, unless the addiction was breakfast or laughter! In regards to addictions for other things besides drugs, anything that doesn’t help you or make you a better person needs to be avoided.

Your Two-Ma saw a lot of worth in staying joyful, full of faith, clean from addictions, and full of humor. I think that’s one of the reasons that she lived so long and had such a full life. You can learn a lot of lessons about living life by looking at how she did it.

Kids, sorry this letter has been all over the place, but the lessons I want you to take from it are important.

Love,

Daddy

To My Special Needs Kids {Letters from Dad: #15}

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!)

Dear Children,

Next month, Mommy and Daddy are going to speak at church about what it’s like to have children with special needs. For Daddy, this brings up a whole string of emotions. Obviously, because you kids are considered special needs, but also because Daddy and some other family members were as well.

You see, kids, the world tries to put everything into a nice, neat category. Black/white, republican/democrat, atheist/agnostic/Christian/Jew, and then those are broken down even further into sub categories.

You children were born super early through no fault of your own, but it is something that directly influences almost every aspect of your lives. Because of this prematurity, you have certain disadvantages. You have very low functioning immune systems, and that’s why we go to the doctor every other week. (not a joke).  Elizabeth has pretty severe asthma. Everyone’s speech is delayed, most especially Caleb’s. You all have sensory issues which cause meltdowns at the drop of a hat. Elizabeth and Caleb will each have surgery by the end of the year to correct more preemie issues.

Here’s the thing though: You all are too small and young to know that there is any difference between you and those around you.

One day, you’ll pick up on the rude comments and hopefully you will learn how to forgive and deal with them. But even when you do figure out that you are different, I want you to know, what the world tells you doesn’t matter. It truly does not. We are all equal in the eyes of God, and you children have just as much value in my eyes as anyone else. The thing that matters most in this world, children, is love. I want love to conquer any inferiorities that you might feel. People will try to put you in a box if you let them, but you have to choose whether or not to get in that box.

Your future successes and failures have nothing to do with the special needs that you were born with or the categories that others try to put you in. Decide what you want in life, and pursue it.

I will always love you and be proud of you.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!)

Dear Children,

Next month, Mommy and Daddy are going to speak at church about what it’s like to have children with special needs. For Daddy, this brings up a whole string of emotions. Obviously, because you kids are considered special needs, but also because Daddy and some other family members were as well.

You see, kids, the world tries to put everything into a nice, neat category. Black/white, republican/democrat, atheist/agnostic/Christian/Jew, and then those are broken down even further into sub categories.

You children were born super early through no fault of your own, but it is something that directly influences almost every aspect of your lives. Because of this prematurity, you have certain disadvantages. You have very low functioning immune systems, and that’s why we go to the doctor every other week. (not a joke).  Elizabeth has pretty severe asthma. Everyone’s speech is delayed, most especially Caleb’s. You all have sensory issues which cause meltdowns at the drop of a hat. Elizabeth and Caleb will each have surgery by the end of the year to correct more preemie issues.

Here’s the thing though: You all are too small and young to know that there is any difference between you and those around you.

One day, you’ll pick up on the rude comments and hopefully you will learn how to forgive and deal with them. But even when you do figure out that you are different, I want you to know, what the world tells you doesn’t matter. It truly does not. We are all equal in the eyes of God, and you children have just as much value in my eyes as anyone else. The thing that matters most in this world, children, is love. I want love to conquer any inferiorities that you might feel. People will try to put you in a box if you let them, but you have to choose whether or not to get in that box.

Your future successes and failures have nothing to do with the special needs that you were born with or the categories that others try to put you in. Decide what you want in life, and pursue it.

I will always love you and be proud of you.

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #14

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Kids,

Once I heard of a principle called H.A.L.T.   H.A.L.T. stands for hungry, angry, lonely, tired. Strange factoid to start a letter with isn’t it? I’m bringing this up because it has been a loooooonnng week. Everyone in this house has been sick except me, and Daddy is tired. 

Basically, what this principle says is to not let yourself become one of the things. Kind of hard to avoid being tired when you have three-year-old quadruplets, especially when they are sick.

Daddy tries to be calm and cool all the time, but I know I’m not. I wish I was. I know there have been times when I have lost my cool this week and raised my voice. Not cool. I wish I wasn’t like that. I will try to be better.

I read this blog post earlier this week. The truth is no matter, how your mother and I parent, there will always be someone who disagrees with us. No matter what we do, you will grow up to be flawed individuals. You might be awesome flawed individuals, but flawed none-the-less. Parenting is all about trying to do the best you can. Our parents before us tried to do their best. I like to think I turned out pretty awesome. They might look back and wish they had done certain things differently. I know I will and do, but unfortunately you can’t change time. We can try to make amends though and heal hurts.

Sorry for not being super daddy all the time.

Love

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Dear Kids,

Once I heard of a principle called H.A.L.T.   H.A.L.T. stands for hungry, angry, lonely, tired. Strange factoid to start a letter with isn’t it? I’m bringing this up because it has been a loooooonnng week. Everyone in this house has been sick except me, and Daddy is tired. 

Basically, what this principle says is to not let yourself become one of the things. Kind of hard to avoid being tired when you have three-year-old quadruplets, especially when they are sick.

Daddy tries to be calm and cool all the time, but I know I’m not. I wish I was. I know there have been times when I have lost my cool this week and raised my voice. Not cool. I wish I wasn’t like that. I will try to be better.

I read this blog post earlier this week. The truth is no matter, how your mother and I parent, there will always be someone who disagrees with us. No matter what we do, you will grow up to be flawed individuals. You might be awesome flawed individuals, but flawed none-the-less. Parenting is all about trying to do the best you can. Our parents before us tried to do their best. I like to think I turned out pretty awesome. They might look back and wish they had done certain things differently. I know I will and do, but unfortunately you can’t change time. We can try to make amends though and heal hurts.

Sorry for not being super daddy all the time.

Love

Daddy

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Marriage and Multiples: Letters from Dad Edition - #13

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Today's post actually fits two categories quite well! It's part of our usual "Letters from Dad" series, but is also a great article in our "Marriage and Multiples" series. Make sure you check out both series when you get a chance!)

Dear Children,

This month, Mommy and I celebrated six years of marriage. For those with mad math skills, we have been married twice as long as you have been alive. The time has flown by.  It’s flown by in a really good way. I can hardly believe that six years have gone by.

On the night we celebrated our anniversary, I started to think about how difficult marriage is. And by that, I don’t mean there is a lot of screaming and fighting. I mean there is a lot of life that is lived. The summer before you children were born, I had a friend that was murdered, our basement flooded, and so did the church basement that I was a deacon at. In hindsight, the flooded basements seem so trivial but during that summer they seemed to be a big deal. We had so many other things go wrong that summer, and we were completely overwhelmed. The next year we had four premature babies (that’s you kids just in case you were wondering if we had another set of quadruplets that we never told you about.) Spending what was essentially four months at the hospital definitely puts your life into perspective. We heard a lot of sad stories while we were there.

Your mommy and I have made it so far. Our goal in life is not to lose sight of each other. Marriages that get rocky do so because of a number of things, but one of them are because the individuals get wrapped in their own lives and forget about each other. It’s easy to get self-absorbed and selfish. It’s not easy to put someone else before your own needs.

Mommy is always asking me why I chose to marry her. I chose for a variety of reasons. She is giving. She gives herself to others and genuinely cares about others’ hurts and wants to help them overcome them. She is brave, way braver than I have ever been. If you don’t believe me go back and read her blog posts. She challenges me. As you know I am very arrogant, and Mommy calls me out on it, but the biggest way she challenges me is that she is very intelligent. Probably one of the smartest people I know, regardless of how much of a hard time I give her. The truth is, children, Mommy is better than me in all the ways that count. She teaches me how to love, and I hope you learn that from her. Love looks differently for each person. I demonstrate it differently than Mommy and you kids will also have your own love languages, but we are family and we need to not give up on each other.

I hope, children, that you one day can have a marriage like Mommy and me. I hope that you challenge one another and love each other madly and deeply. Please, please don’t ever lose sight of your spouse, and work towards giving them what they think they need.

Love,

Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!

Today's post actually fits two categories quite well! It's part of our usual "Letters from Dad" series, but is also a great article in our "Marriage and Multiples" series. Make sure you check out both series when you get a chance!)

Dear Children,

This month, Mommy and I celebrated six years of marriage. For those with mad math skills, we have been married twice as long as you have been alive. The time has flown by.  It’s flown by in a really good way. I can hardly believe that six years have gone by.

On the night we celebrated our anniversary, I started to think about how difficult marriage is. And by that, I don’t mean there is a lot of screaming and fighting. I mean there is a lot of life that is lived. The summer before you children were born, I had a friend that was murdered, our basement flooded, and so did the church basement that I was a deacon at. In hindsight, the flooded basements seem so trivial but during that summer they seemed to be a big deal. We had so many other things go wrong that summer, and we were completely overwhelmed. The next year we had four premature babies (that’s you kids just in case you were wondering if we had another set of quadruplets that we never told you about.) Spending what was essentially four months at the hospital definitely puts your life into perspective. We heard a lot of sad stories while we were there.

Your mommy and I have made it so far. Our goal in life is not to lose sight of each other. Marriages that get rocky do so because of a number of things, but one of them are because the individuals get wrapped in their own lives and forget about each other. It’s easy to get self-absorbed and selfish. It’s not easy to put someone else before your own needs.

Mommy is always asking me why I chose to marry her. I chose for a variety of reasons. She is giving. She gives herself to others and genuinely cares about others’ hurts and wants to help them overcome them. She is brave, way braver than I have ever been. If you don’t believe me go back and read her blog posts. She challenges me. As you know I am very arrogant, and Mommy calls me out on it, but the biggest way she challenges me is that she is very intelligent. Probably one of the smartest people I know, regardless of how much of a hard time I give her. The truth is, children, Mommy is better than me in all the ways that count. She teaches me how to love, and I hope you learn that from her. Love looks differently for each person. I demonstrate it differently than Mommy and you kids will also have your own love languages, but we are family and we need to not give up on each other.

I hope, children, that you one day can have a marriage like Mommy and me. I hope that you challenge one another and love each other madly and deeply. Please, please don’t ever lose sight of your spouse, and work towards giving them what they think they need.

Love,

Daddy

Letters from Dad: #12

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!)

Dear Children,

You are now three years old, and you have grown so much. In leaps and bounds.

When you were first born I worried about you so much, especially the girls; Abby with her oxygen issues and Ellie with the cysts on her brain and her stiff legs. Now, you are three and will begin preschool in a week. It’s been a long journey for you, and a long journey for your Mommy and Daddy.

We are so proud of you.

Three years, and it has gone by so quickly. But I still worry about you. I mostly worry about Caleb these days since he talks the least and is still something of a loner. People tell me not to worry about his talking, because one day he won’t ever quit. I know that day will be here soon, but right now in this moment in time, I worry about him. He seems to struggle so, but he also seems happy, so I should just let it be and stop worrying.

Children, there is a verse in the Bible about not being able to add a moment to your life by worrying. I can’t make Caleb talk. I can’t make you all sleep at night. I can’t guarantee that you will live a happy productive life. Only God can take care of us. It’s more productive to give my worries about you children to God rather than to keep them as my own.

Happy Birthday, Children! Continue to be happy and lead blessed lives. May you know God and live life to the fullest.

Love,

Your Daddy

(Once a month, I invite Sean to take over the blog and write a little note to our kids. I love that he is willing to leave little nuggets of wisdom for them to look back on when they are older!)

Dear Children,

You are now three years old, and you have grown so much. In leaps and bounds.

When you were first born I worried about you so much, especially the girls; Abby with her oxygen issues and Ellie with the cysts on her brain and her stiff legs. Now, you are three and will begin preschool in a week. It’s been a long journey for you, and a long journey for your Mommy and Daddy.

We are so proud of you.

Three years, and it has gone by so quickly. But I still worry about you. I mostly worry about Caleb these days since he talks the least and is still something of a loner. People tell me not to worry about his talking, because one day he won’t ever quit. I know that day will be here soon, but right now in this moment in time, I worry about him. He seems to struggle so, but he also seems happy, so I should just let it be and stop worrying.

Children, there is a verse in the Bible about not being able to add a moment to your life by worrying. I can’t make Caleb talk. I can’t make you all sleep at night. I can’t guarantee that you will live a happy productive life. Only God can take care of us. It’s more productive to give my worries about you children to God rather than to keep them as my own.

Happy Birthday, Children! Continue to be happy and lead blessed lives. May you know God and live life to the fullest.

Love,

Your Daddy

Letters from Dad: #10

“Hi Daddy!”

These are the words that greet me when I walk through the door at the end of the day. Then this little doll follows me around the room saying “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy” with a smile in her voice, and every chance she gets she latches on to my leg and hugs them tightly.

My sweet little Abby girl.

She gets mad at me if I stop in the kitchen to talk to Mommy. She wants me to pick her up so that she can wrap her arms around my neck and tell me all about her day. I still can’t understand everything she says, but every day, I understand a little more. Sometimes, I think she is just too excited and talking too fast.

She won’t always be my little girl. One day she will get truly mad at Daddy and not just for talking to Mommy instead of her. When she becomes a teenager and hates her mother and me, I hope I can remember the sweet girl who yells for me in the morning when I am getting ready for work. Before she could crawl, I would come home from work and pick her up as she gibbered at me. I felt like she was telling me about her day so then I would make up songs to sing to her. She was the sickest in the NICU and sometimes the nurses would say we needed to avoid her so that she could rest. I would get so angry at the nurses for trying to keep me from my daughter. I know they were only trying to protect her, but when she was in that little isolette there was only so much I could do. I wanted her to feel my presence and know that her Daddy loved her.

No matter what happens in life, I hope that my children will always know I love them.

“Hi Daddy!”

These are the words that greet me when I walk through the door at the end of the day. Then this little doll follows me around the room saying “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy” with a smile in her voice, and every chance she gets she latches on to my leg and hugs them tightly.

My sweet little Abby girl.

She gets mad at me if I stop in the kitchen to talk to Mommy. She wants me to pick her up so that she can wrap her arms around my neck and tell me all about her day. I still can’t understand everything she says, but every day, I understand a little more. Sometimes, I think she is just too excited and talking too fast.

She won’t always be my little girl. One day she will get truly mad at Daddy and not just for talking to Mommy instead of her. When she becomes a teenager and hates her mother and me, I hope I can remember the sweet girl who yells for me in the morning when I am getting ready for work. Before she could crawl, I would come home from work and pick her up as she gibbered at me. I felt like she was telling me about her day so then I would make up songs to sing to her. She was the sickest in the NICU and sometimes the nurses would say we needed to avoid her so that she could rest. I would get so angry at the nurses for trying to keep me from my daughter. I know they were only trying to protect her, but when she was in that little isolette there was only so much I could do. I wanted her to feel my presence and know that her Daddy loved her.

No matter what happens in life, I hope that my children will always know I love them.

Letters from Dad: #9

Innovation, children, is the current buzzword these days.

At least it is in the circles, your daddy travels in. It’s not a bad word. In fact, Daddy has used it for years. Maybe not out loud, but certainly in that playground called his mind.

Innovation is nice; it means progress is being made. Generally, I am an advocate for progress. However, as the Dave Matthews Band said in the song The Dreaming Tree, “Now progress takes away from what forever took to find”. I say this because newer and bigger does not necessarily equal “better”. Let me hopefully illustrate this a little with a couple of examples….

Let’s start with movie theaters. When I was a child there were hardly any movie theaters. The few movie theaters that existed had between two and eight screens, and the tickets were taken at each screen. Nowadays, we have multiplexes with digital screens and sound systems, and the tickets are taken when you walk into the theater. Does it sound and look better? Yes. There are also a lot more movies that are churned out these days, which means there are more good movies and more bad movies.

The way the multiplexes are set up, though, encourages theater hopping. Think about it: You walk in, they take your ticket, and then you have your choice of 20-30 movies. After you walk into the theater, you go over to the concession stand, and they want to sell you 15 pounds of soda and popcorn with free refills. It’s like they are asking you to camp there for the day. Of course, when you walk into the movie, they show you a commercial about how piracy is not a victimless crime. Movie theaters have improved in certain aspects but in other ways they have detracted. They have better sound systems, pictures, and ways to quickly move people through lines, but now that same innovation promotes people to steal.

Another example is telecommunications. When I was a wee lad, homes usually had one phone line. I remember my great-grandma had a party line down on her farm. A party line meant that several houses shared the same number. They took turns and made it work. Nowadays, everyone has a cellphone including kids…little kids! It used to be hard to catch someone on the phone. Now you can find anyone almost any time of day. Phones also have GPS which used to be a science fiction concept. Now, if you are carrying a cell phone, you can be tracked. It’s nice to get a hold of anyone at any hour, but it also removes a certain aspect of privacy. That’s gone, and I don’t see it coming back.

The thing is, kids, innovation means we are moving forward. Progress is great, but you have to watch out for the downsides to it. The industrial revolution brought many improvements to our world, but it also brought a lot of pollution, injuries, overcrowding, and child labor victims. Our food these days is a lot easier to cook, but according to a good percentage of the world, our quick food has a lot of consequences to it: obesity, cancer, high cholesterol, and a slew of other heath problems. There is the question of are there more diseases now than there was 200 years ago, or are we just better informed?

Instant communication and instant gratification have brought forth a lack of patience along with progress. A lack of patience has brought an increasing amount of debt. Debt leads to even more problems. What I want you to understand is that progress and innovation aren't bad, but constantly looking for the next bigger and better thing will hurt you in the long run. Enjoy the progress that will be made over your life, but also learn contentment with what you have. Eventually, everything on earth will go away, and the things that were so important to you, will no longer matter. Read the book of Ecclesiastes, children, and do not chase after the wind.

Innovation, children, is the current buzzword these days.

At least it is in the circles, your daddy travels in. It’s not a bad word. In fact, Daddy has used it for years. Maybe not out loud, but certainly in that playground called his mind.

Innovation is nice; it means progress is being made. Generally, I am an advocate for progress. However, as the Dave Matthews Band said in the song The Dreaming Tree, “Now progress takes away from what forever took to find”. I say this because newer and bigger does not necessarily equal “better”. Let me hopefully illustrate this a little with a couple of examples….

Let’s start with movie theaters. When I was a child there were hardly any movie theaters. The few movie theaters that existed had between two and eight screens, and the tickets were taken at each screen. Nowadays, we have multiplexes with digital screens and sound systems, and the tickets are taken when you walk into the theater. Does it sound and look better? Yes. There are also a lot more movies that are churned out these days, which means there are more good movies and more bad movies.

The way the multiplexes are set up, though, encourages theater hopping. Think about it: You walk in, they take your ticket, and then you have your choice of 20-30 movies. After you walk into the theater, you go over to the concession stand, and they want to sell you 15 pounds of soda and popcorn with free refills. It’s like they are asking you to camp there for the day. Of course, when you walk into the movie, they show you a commercial about how piracy is not a victimless crime. Movie theaters have improved in certain aspects but in other ways they have detracted. They have better sound systems, pictures, and ways to quickly move people through lines, but now that same innovation promotes people to steal.

Another example is telecommunications. When I was a wee lad, homes usually had one phone line. I remember my great-grandma had a party line down on her farm. A party line meant that several houses shared the same number. They took turns and made it work. Nowadays, everyone has a cellphone including kids…little kids! It used to be hard to catch someone on the phone. Now you can find anyone almost any time of day. Phones also have GPS which used to be a science fiction concept. Now, if you are carrying a cell phone, you can be tracked. It’s nice to get a hold of anyone at any hour, but it also removes a certain aspect of privacy. That’s gone, and I don’t see it coming back.

The thing is, kids, innovation means we are moving forward. Progress is great, but you have to watch out for the downsides to it. The industrial revolution brought many improvements to our world, but it also brought a lot of pollution, injuries, overcrowding, and child labor victims. Our food these days is a lot easier to cook, but according to a good percentage of the world, our quick food has a lot of consequences to it: obesity, cancer, high cholesterol, and a slew of other heath problems. There is the question of are there more diseases now than there was 200 years ago, or are we just better informed?

Instant communication and instant gratification have brought forth a lack of patience along with progress. A lack of patience has brought an increasing amount of debt. Debt leads to even more problems. What I want you to understand is that progress and innovation aren't bad, but constantly looking for the next bigger and better thing will hurt you in the long run. Enjoy the progress that will be made over your life, but also learn contentment with what you have. Eventually, everything on earth will go away, and the things that were so important to you, will no longer matter. Read the book of Ecclesiastes, children, and do not chase after the wind.

Letters from Dad: #8

Note: When I originally asked Sean to write a monthly post for our blog, I told him that he could write about whatever he wanted. This is what he came up with this month. Although it really doesn't have anything to do with parenting or multiples, I'm publishing it anyway. The original idea was for Sean to write posts to his kids so that they had something preserved for them. Well, kids...this is your Daddy. :)

Sometimes my “geek” shows.

I have always read comic books and been influenced by them.When I was a wee lad, I wanted to be a scientist because all of the great superheroes were scientists.  My sixth grade science teacher laughed at that dream, so I decided to choose a different career path instead.

I still read comics, and I still think of things that would be cool to invent. Maybe one of my kids will one day become a scientist or an inventor, so I’m putting in my order.

Here is a list of some of the things that I would like to see:

• Teleportation: How awesome would this be? Think of all the time it would save. Hey, want to travel to Greece? Bam, no jet lag. You are there in an instant. No more rush hour commute to work. You can sleep in later and still get there on time. This would have to work on a type of hub or maybe not. It couldn't just be blanket teleportation or people might start robbing banks.  However, think what this could do to eliminate global hunger and to expand medicine!
• Infinite Space/Phantom Zones/Pocket Dimensions: I’m not sure what the best name is for this because it’s just an idea that I’m throwing out. Imagine if you had the ability to open up a pocket in space that you could use as storage. People would have clean garages and there would be more space around the world as the population continues to grow. We could also have a pocket dimension just for the world’s garbage. No more dumps!
• Instant Cleaning: In the Star Wars books that I read, instead of taking showers, they take sani-steams.  This is probably just a fancy way of saying shower, but I like to imagine it is some kind of sonic chamber that they step into, and it cleans them within a minute.  I would like there to be some way to instantly clean things especially the mouth.  It would be great if whenever we were done eating little microbots would clean and floss our teeth.  Bam.  No more bad breath.
• Miracle Cures or Instant Healing: Anyone remember the Bacta tank from the Empire Strikes Back?  This is the tank that Luke was put into to heal from the Wampa attack.  (Did I mention sometimes my geek shows?)  How cool would it be if there was a miracle liquid that could cure things like burns and cuts or other topical diseases?
• Digitized Information: The older I get, the slower I think. I’m sure that has to do with the amount of information that I’ve absorbed so far during my lifetime, or maybe it has to do with having more responsibilities. Either way, it would be nice if there was a way that things could be digitized and stored in the brain for instant recall when needed.
• Flying cars: Like in the movie Back to the Future II. How come we don’t have these yet?

Here’s hoping that one of my kids will be scientific geniuses and make some of these things. Hey, a dad can hope, right?

What kind of things would you like to see in the future? How soon do you think some of these will be in our life?

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

Note: When I originally asked Sean to write a monthly post for our blog, I told him that he could write about whatever he wanted. This is what he came up with this month. Although it really doesn't have anything to do with parenting or multiples, I'm publishing it anyway. The original idea was for Sean to write posts to his kids so that they had something preserved for them. Well, kids...this is your Daddy. :)

Sometimes my “geek” shows.

I have always read comic books and been influenced by them.When I was a wee lad, I wanted to be a scientist because all of the great superheroes were scientists.  My sixth grade science teacher laughed at that dream, so I decided to choose a different career path instead.

I still read comics, and I still think of things that would be cool to invent. Maybe one of my kids will one day become a scientist or an inventor, so I’m putting in my order.

Here is a list of some of the things that I would like to see:

• Teleportation: How awesome would this be? Think of all the time it would save. Hey, want to travel to Greece? Bam, no jet lag. You are there in an instant. No more rush hour commute to work. You can sleep in later and still get there on time. This would have to work on a type of hub or maybe not. It couldn't just be blanket teleportation or people might start robbing banks.  However, think what this could do to eliminate global hunger and to expand medicine!
• Infinite Space/Phantom Zones/Pocket Dimensions: I’m not sure what the best name is for this because it’s just an idea that I’m throwing out. Imagine if you had the ability to open up a pocket in space that you could use as storage. People would have clean garages and there would be more space around the world as the population continues to grow. We could also have a pocket dimension just for the world’s garbage. No more dumps!
• Instant Cleaning: In the Star Wars books that I read, instead of taking showers, they take sani-steams.  This is probably just a fancy way of saying shower, but I like to imagine it is some kind of sonic chamber that they step into, and it cleans them within a minute.  I would like there to be some way to instantly clean things especially the mouth.  It would be great if whenever we were done eating little microbots would clean and floss our teeth.  Bam.  No more bad breath.
• Miracle Cures or Instant Healing: Anyone remember the Bacta tank from the Empire Strikes Back?  This is the tank that Luke was put into to heal from the Wampa attack.  (Did I mention sometimes my geek shows?)  How cool would it be if there was a miracle liquid that could cure things like burns and cuts or other topical diseases?
• Digitized Information: The older I get, the slower I think. I’m sure that has to do with the amount of information that I’ve absorbed so far during my lifetime, or maybe it has to do with having more responsibilities. Either way, it would be nice if there was a way that things could be digitized and stored in the brain for instant recall when needed.
• Flying cars: Like in the movie Back to the Future II. How come we don’t have these yet?

Here’s hoping that one of my kids will be scientific geniuses and make some of these things. Hey, a dad can hope, right?

What kind of things would you like to see in the future? How soon do you think some of these will be in our life?

This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.