Lucky

    You never realize how lucky you are until there is a threat of things changing.  I have the most amazing wife in the world.  She supports me in anything and everything I want to do, she takes care of our children and our house every day.  We are very lucky that she is in our lives.  I don't know how I would get through every day without her.  She is my rock in this crazy world we live in.  She knows how to make me smile when I am upset.  I fall in love with her more every single day.

   I have a very short temper and therefore I can get very agitated with Aiden.  I need to stop doing that he is four years old and like every four year old he has a ton of energy.  Does he always use it the right way no, but he is not trying to hurt anyone or cause them any harm.  I have enjoyed every moment of his life from the second he was born, to the first time he smiled at me and giggled.  I love that he shares our passion for the Phillies and baseball in general.  I can't believe that this time next year he will be getting ready to go to kindergarten.  My little boy is growing up and we will never have these days back again.  I need to remember to cherish every single moment of the time we get to spend together because before I know it he will be ready to go off to college.

   I was watching one of the tv shows on Disney channel that Aiden watches the other day.  The family on the show was throwing their daughter a sweet sixteen party.  The dad in the family was sitting outside on the porch and when asked by his daughter what he was doing he said he couldn't face the fact that is little girl was growing up.  When I look at Raegan right now I know she is going to be my little girl forever and I am scared to death that she is going to grow up.  I know she is going to go through the faze in her life where she will hate me but ultimately we will have the relationship that every daughter has with her father.  She just started saying I love you which is an amazing thing to hear from your child, but at the same time it scares the hell out of me because I know it means she is growing up.  I am going to eventually answer the question why I treat her differently then I do Aiden.  I am going to me more protective of her, I am going to be more strict with her and its all because I don't want my little girl to grow up.

   What can I say about my parents, they have done everything parents should do and 100% more.  They supported me in everything in my life, from getting up at 5 for swim practice, to giving up their weekends to travel to and from meets, to sacrificing so that Kevin, Tim and I could have the things we needed in life.  I can never repay all that they have done for me.  I just hope that I can be half the parent that my parents were.  I know I don't tell them enough and I really need to start telling them how much I love them when I talk to them, because I guess you never know when you hang up the phone when it will be your last.  Thank you Mom and Dad for everything you have done for me, Ashley, Aiden and Raegan. 

   Most people sit and complain about their in-laws as people they can't stand or do not want to be associated with.  Nothing is further from the truth for me.  Peg and Trevor are two of the most kind, caring and amazing people I have ever met.  They have taken me in as part of their family from the very beginning almost 10 years ago.  They too have been there and supported us in every endeavor we taken on in the last 10 years and for that I am so grateful.  If it is to paint a room in our house, a babysitter or just an ear to lean on they have been more than willing.  Again I can never repay either of you for everything you have done for our family.  Thank you.

   Kevin I know we have not always seen eye to eye and I am sure that will continue but I truly cherish what we have.  I am so happy that you have found Cammy and that the two of you are so happy together.  I can only hope that you continue to be happy.  You have been an amazing Uncle to our children and I know they love every moment that they get to spend with you. Thank you for standing next to us on our wedding day and being a true best man. 

   Cammy thank you so much for putting up with Kevin and in turn our family.  I don't know how you do it.  You are definitely the sister I never had.  I can remember the first time we met in high school, who would have known that this many years later we would be here together.  You love our children unconditionally and there are not enough words to express what that means to me.  Thank you

     
Tim I am going to try to express this in writing.  I am so proud of you.  You have become an amazing swimmer, I know firsthand the dedication it takes to become a collegiate athlete and you put an enormous amount of work into swimming and your school work and it shows.  I know that this year you will become the MAC champion in the 50 free.  I know you and I haven't always been so close do to the distance between us but you have become a great young man and am thankful for the role model that you are for Aiden and Raegan I hope that continues.  You are very lucky to have found Amber she is truly the ying to your yang.  Keep hold of her tight and don't ever let her go.  We all love her and know that she is the one that was meant for you. 

  Whether she reads this or not I want to include Nana in this.  Another person who has sacrificed and given everything she has to our whole family.  I cherish every second I get to spend with her, it is not nearly as much as I would like it to be with everything going on in our lives, but I am going to make it a point to have us spend more time with her.  I love that some of the traditions that she started when I was young she is now getting to pass on to her great-grand kids.      

     I wrote this post because something in my life scared the hell out of me today.  I wanted to write this so the people I love know how I feel about them.  I love you all with everything of my being, you mean the world to me. If tomorrow never comes........

Phillies Rant

     All the talk I hear about people complaining that the Phillies are not hitting are absolutely crazy. They are the best team in Major League Baseball this year, they have three pitchers who are viable Cy Young candidates if you check major pitching statistical categories they are all either at the top or in the top three in all of the categories. Would it be nice if the lineup could hit more? Absolutely it would, but Ryan Howard has72 RBI at the all-star break and that is without a solid number 5 hitter or most of the season without Chase Utley in front of him.

     Last time I checked pitching and defense wins a World Series Championship, and the Philies have a .987 fielding percentage which is close to the top in MLB. They have won 107 games since last years all-star game. This is the golden era of Phillies baseball! As someone who sat throughout the late eighties early nineties teams and then again in the late nineties and early 2000's I hope people remember what it was like back then. Sit back and enjoy the ride!

Parenthood

When I found out I was going to be a father I was overwhelmed with emotions. I was extremely happy because Ashley and I were finally fulfilling our dream of becoming parents and that we were going to get to share this amazing journey with our families. I was upset because we were not going to get to share this moment with our family that were not here like Ashley’s dad, Aunt Jeanne and our Grandfathers. Mostly I was scared to death. What kind of father would I be, I could barely take care of myself let alone have a little baby rely on me for a bottle, and a clean diaper. I remember all of the firsts like it was yesterday. I remember seeing the ultrasound picture for the first time, hearing the heartbeat with our mom’s for the first time.

We decided not to find out if we were having a boy or a girl when Ashley was pregnant with Aiden. We wanted to take advantage of one of the few surprises in life. I can honestly say that I did not care whether it was a boy or a girl, I just wanted the baby to have 10 fingers and 10 toes and be healthy. Of course I would have loved him even if he wasn’t perfect. We had a name picked out for both. The middle names were going to be Garrett for Ashley’s dad or Jean for my Aunt Jeanne. They were two very important and influential people in our lives and we wanted to honor them and have them be a part of our children.

I especially remember the day at the hospital. We were there at 6 a.m. and spent all day at the hospital and Ashley was not progressing at all. We were not the only ones there as my parents, Ashley’s mom, Nana, Ashley’s Mom-Mom Kevin, Timmy, J.T., and Trevor all spent the day at the hospital. Finally at about 6:30 they decided that Ashley needed to have a C-Section. Aiden was born at 7:23 on May 23, 2007. He was absolutely perfect and I fell in love with him from the very second I first laid eyes on him. We spent the next few days at the hospital before Ashley and Aiden were allowed to come home. Ashley and I did not want to let go of him. We have amazing family and friends who just wanted to meet Aiden so much so that we had at least 30 people stuffed into Ashley’s room the night after Aiden was born. It is a good thing she never had a roommate because that person would have hated us.

We were far from being perfect parents (and probably still are) we tried to clean Aiden’s nose with the syringe and for the first few times were squeezing the bulb while it was still in his nose and probably blowing everything further into his nose. No wonder the kid hated the thing.

A little over two years now we found out that God was going to bless us with our second child we were so excited that Aiden would have a little brother or sister. Of course every time we asked him he kept telling us that he wanted a sister. We debated and decided that for Aiden’s sake this time we were going to find out if we were having a boy or a girl so that we could prepare him in case it was not a girl. This time I am not going to lie I actually wanted a girl. I would have been fine if it was a boy but part of me wanted to have my little girl and all the dreams a father has with having a girl. Finding out if we were having a boy or a girl made this pregnancy a totally different experience for us. We could get the room ready, buy clothes that were gender specific. Aiden was so excited when we told him he was having a sister. Our mothers were so excited because they could go out and buy little girl’s stuff. I think my mom was more than excited it was the first time in her life she would have a little girl around in the family.

This time Ashley was scheduled for a C-Section. The night before we took Aiden to Giovanni’s his favorite local restaurant and had our last dinner as a family of three. We then took him to Me-Me’s house where he was going to spend the night since we had to be at the hospital by 6 in the morning the next morning. We got to the hospital and sat and waited in a room until about 6:45. They then took Ashley to prepare her for surgery. They gave me scrubs and told me to sit in the waiting room while and they would come get me. It seemed like it was taking forever. They finally came and got me. It was only a matter of minutes before we welcomed Raegan into the world. She had me wrapped around her finger the second I saw her.

My mom and Ashley’s mom bought Aiden to the hospital to meet Raegan. He was so excited he loved her and loved being a big brother from the second he saw her. All he wanted to do has help with her , hug her and kiss her. He was upset the first night when I had to take him home so that Ashley could get some rest.

It feels like just yesterday that it was just Ashley and I at 103 Pinetree court with our family there helping tear down that pointless wall over 6 years ago, but at the same time, I can hardly remember what life was like before our kids. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

I am taking in every second of everyday I get to spend with my kids. My family makes me one lucky man!