Life As Dad Knows It

It's about time I put my small stamp on Nicky's famous blog. As everyone can see, Nichole has a gift for writing. The most amazing thing is she does it so effortlessly. As you read this small paragraph, know that it probably took me about 3 or 4 hours to put the words together...and thank goodness for spell check! I love her blog...especially when I am out of town. It makes me feel I'm back home and feel homesick at the same time. I wanted to share a little bit about me and my family from my perspective.

Like all Dads out there, my life revolves around trying to balance my time between providing for and spending time with my young family. I learn more and more each day that work is overrated and playing with my fam is where it's at! My favorite family activities are our annual trips to a cabin in the Smokey Mountains, summer trips to the beach, taking Cole to the annual Jazz vs Bobcats game, daddy daughter dates with Paige and Lily, throwing Grace in the air, tickling the girls, running through the house chasing the kids like a monster, our 10 min family home evening lessons before the kids melt down from "lesson fatigue," and when the kids come running yelling "Daddy!" when I get home from work. My free time is spent playing or watching sports. As I get older the playing decreases and the watching increases. I just started playing tennis a year ago. It's an "old guy" sport you can play for years. It will get real scary when I take up golf!

Cole is the only boy surrounded by girly girls. But he's all boy. He loves teasing his sisters, playing make believe, writing stories, running around in the woods behind our house and riding his bike. Like his mom he is very smart and unbelievably creative. As they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. He is also a very caring boy...always thinking of others.

Paige is my little sweetheart. She is so kind and her smile lights up the room. She sometimes gets the least attention because she is so easy going. She is the first one to run up and give me a hug when I get home from work. She's also a great little cheerleader. SAS All stars...a step ahead...Carolina's finest...enough said!

Lily is the little firecracker in our family. She loves to get into everything, plays with it, tears it apart, and finally discard it wherever she happens to be. She is mommy's little helper in the kitchen. She is the last to go to bed at night...just too much to do! She gives the best hugs and kisses.

Grace is really bursting with personality now. She wants to do everything the big kids do. She doesn't realize she's only 16 months old. She is a disaster at church, but at least she gets me out in the hall when the talks are boring! That's a joke of course:) She gut laughs when I throw her in the air and that makes me gut laugh too!

What can I say about Nicky. She said in her blog she sometimes feels like a wild horse..."wanting to be free and sometimes getting myself into trouble, but really just docile at heart." I have at times tried to tame her but quickly realize that is exactly what I love about her. She's spontaneous, creative, fun loving, artistic, and inspiring. I love to see her new paintings and other creative ideas that she brings to life. I don't want to embarrass her, but hey, this is my mini blog and I can say whatever I want! She has always been stunning to me, from the time I first saw her across the fast food joint she worked at! The amazing thing is, she is even more beautiful today than she was back then. OK, now I've really embarrassed her. Mission accomplished! Suffice it to say, I'm very blessed to have her as my wife, and to share life's ups and downs with. She makes everything in my life richer and brighter.

That's a little bit about my life as I know it. I'll make sure to write again in another year or two. I hope that Nicky finds this "blog worthy" and it makes the cut to be posted! Until next time!