things I never though I would say

Last fall, there was one night where the family was sitting down to have dinner. Now I understand that nachos may not be the most nutritious dinner ever, but it can't possibly be the worst either. Anyway, it's not like we eat them every week or anything, but they are tasty and easy to make. It was one time. Stop yelling at me.

So, as we are getting ready to eat, dishing up the kids food, Vanessa asked Eleanor how many chips she wanted. She said 5.

This began the list of Things I Never Thought I Would Say when I signed up for the parenting gig I now am a part of. Since that moment, I have been tracking all of the phrases that were unexpectedly crossing my mouth since then. The first was

"you need to eat more than 5 chips for dinner"

After saying this, it made me stop and think. Did I ever think that I would one day actually have to be talking my 5 year old in to eating MORE chips for dinner? The things you learn as a parent are amazing.

fathers day

I know that all dads out there in the blogosphere (and probably some moms too) are commenting on fathers day. So why would I leave myself out?

After a long day at work today (yup, I don't get fathers day off either) I got to meet my wife & the kids at my parents house for dinner. My brother was there, and there was some discussion about fathers day and the difference between moms & dads. He noted that for mothers day, moms want to be pampered and want to have every care handled for them. Maybe some quiet time at home without the kids, or dinner cooked and cleaned by dad.

On fathers day, dads seem to be expected to spend the day with the kids. This, in my opinion, is the best part about the day. I don't think that many fathers get to spend anywhere near as much time just hanging out with the kids as they should, resulting in the complete opposite goal of the day versus moms day.

Dads: Go enjoy the kids, revel in their ability to play. Learn from them what it means to play and have fun, even in the simplest activity. Know that whatever you do, you are one of the most important figures in the lives of your kids, and take every opportunity you can to love your kids.

Happy Fathers Day Dads!

hold fast

This weekend has been quite the challenging one at work. We had a man down due to slicing his thumb on the meat slicer, of all things, who happens to be a kitchen manager. To top it off, one dishwasher is sick, one quit, and one got fired. All this weekend. Oh, and our fry guy* is in the hospital, from an injury suffered playing baseball.
Needless to say, I suffered some stress. But it is over now. Time to mellow out and take a moment to come up and breathe. Relaxing time now, listening to MercyMe tell me all about how no matter how much our life on Earth may tax us, God is always there to hold on to us, if only we reach to him. Reach folks, and hold fast, help is on the way.


*fry guy refers to the dude who works the deep fryer/flat top, and on Sunday brunch is the crucial link to everyone in Langley receiving their eggs benedict with the proper toppings on them. Oh, and the potatoes. mmm...

driving to the party

I was going to post, something clever about Thomas and the multitude of comedic phrases that comes out of his mouth. Sometimes intentionally, sometimes unintentionally.

Alas, I have been coerced into driving Miss. Eleanor to a "party", and it starts in 3 minutes. Oh...one of her friends is getting married. I can't miss this.