Father's Day 2009

Living the American Dream...

What do exactly do these words mean? Most would probably argue that anyone born in this country ultimately has their destiny within reach. All you have to do is work hard enough in school and get good grades, stay active in sports/activities so you are well-rounded, choose your friends wisely, and steer away from trouble. If you do these things, you can pursue just about any course in life, and as long as you keep meeting the accepted requirements, you will get there.

Some people would argue that living the American dream is being able to experience the fairy tale life...meeting that special person and falling in love, buying a big house with a white picket fence, and then filling all the bedrooms with little munchkins that try to eat you out of that very house. Every day you come home from work and kiss the wife, wrestle with the kids, and sit down to a big family dinner.

While I agree with many of these sentiments, I have slightly different viewpoint of what it means to live the American Dream...You see, I got to grow up with a father that I consider my hero. He served his country, which is a big reason why I did the same. He was gone to work when I woke up every morning, and didn't come home until I was through with both school and practice. I honestly don't remember if I ever heard him complain about it...When I was in sports season (which was just about year round), he came straight from work to see me at meets, matches or games. Accept he didn't just do this for me...he did this for all four of us boys. He kept a nice yard (with alot of help from mom of course), and took good care of his cars or other valuables. While he was very scary when he was mad, he was consistent in discipline and we all new his expectations. He was supportive and encouraging with us no matter what direction we wanted to head in...

All in all, he was to me what I want to be to my son...I will constantly live in the shadow of his example...I will constantly strive to meet the same expectations. My family comes first, no matter how long the work day, no matter how tired I am, and no matter what direction my son wants to go in. All of this I will do in my father's honor. I'm living the American Dream, and my son deserves to do the same...I love you Pop...

Here are some pictures of Ally, Grayson and I on my first Father's Day. We went to an Irish festival in downtown Annapolis and had a great time. Allyson was even breastfeeding on a busy street!

Random Pics...

Some other good ones that are on the camera from when Sean was in town with Sarah...

Grayson loves his bath time!

Hey all! Sorry it has been a couple weeks since my last post...the days just seem shorter for some reason right now. Here are some pics from some of his bathing episodes. He loves the warm water and his eyes get really wide whenever we have him in there...

Sorry about the R-rated one! Not!

1 Lb and 1.5 Inches in 10 days!!!!

In ten days time, he has gained One Whole Pound, and grew 1.5 Inches in Length. How is that even possible?! Did the hospital measure incorrectly on his B-day or something? No way, I saw them take the measurements myself, I was standing right there.

Yet when Allyson brought him in for his latest checkup it was obvious that he had gained and grown, right before our very eyes. He's doing soooo well you guys!

Here he is with Katie Baculic on Saturday afternoon. He endured the 1.5 hour road trip to Ashburn, VA in blissful sleep, and got to meet the warm and loving family that I now love as much as my own. Having the Kearney/Smith family so close has been a blessing for Allyson and I since we moved here. It felt so good to see their happy faces and revel in their excitement for us!

Speaking of family:

That is Ally's brother Sean on the right (with Linda/Ed in the middle of course). Sean got here on Friday and he brought baby Sarah with him. We certainly wish Steph was here with him, but we understand that duty takes priority... We'll see you in a few weeks Steph, be safe!

So as you can see, we've had a full house since Grayson got here! I dropped Ed/Linda off at the airport a few hours ago so the crowd is starting to dim, but Allyson and I are excited to do this on our own now. We can't thank Ed and Linda enough though for being here over the last several days! I think it is awesome that Ed got to experience the moment when Ally's water broke, and having Linda to help with Grayson, make us dinners, clean house, and offer her advice was/is so greatly appreciated that I'm not sure how we can pay her back. Thank you so much for coming you guys, we love you and can't wait to see you at the beach!

As for my family, I'm eagerly awaiting Grayson's first road trip to Michigan. We'll be there at the end of June and we'll get to see the whole fam dam and Kevin and Jackie's new house as well. We are so excited to see you all, and I'm practically counting the days. It will be great to see him next to all the his new cousins, uncles and aunts. I'm especially looking forward to seeing mom and pop hold him too... We'll see you soon and we love you!

Before my son was here, I imagined...

I'm not sure why, but whenever I thought about being a father, I usally conjured this image in my head...

It feels so good to make it a reality! The Sunday afternoon nap in our hammock in the backyard is even better now than it was a few weeks ago...

Stella's female instinct:

Everybody has been asking about the dogs, and how they have reacted to the new arrival. Most assumed Truman would be the snuggly one and Stella would stare at us from dark corners, harboring feelings of resentment and jealousy. After all, she didn't exactly deal so well when we took in a puppy for a few months last year. It has actually been very surprising for us to see their reactions.

Truman seems to care less that Grayson is here! He drops by for the occasional sniff and lick, but then continues on his merry way to find someone that can actually pet him. Stella on the other hand has gone through a miraculous transformation! Whenever mom gets up in the middle of the night to feed the litlte guy, Stella follows her into Grayson's room and lays at Allyson's feet until the feeding is done. Then it is back to bed with the rest of the family. She is always calm around Gray, and seems to understand just how gentle she needs to be. I have to admit, I'm still dumbfounded by the whole change in her (if you've seen some of her quirks you can especially relate).