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I Lost A Tooth

“I lost a tooth, but I lost it,” Goalielocks wrote in a short note to the tooth fair.  He was six years old at the time and had just lost his second tooth.   We brought him up to bed and my hubby dug in his pocket to pull out the tooth, but it was missing.  Unfortunately my husband, who was holding on to the tooth until bedtime, misplaced the tooth.  Goalielocks was beyond distraught as was my hubby, who felt terrible.

Since there was no hope of finding the tooth in time for bed time, we suggested that Goalielocks write the Tooth Fairy a note explaining what had happened. My idea of a note includes a greeting and a signature, but his was much simpler.  He drafted his note, showed it to us and placed it under his pillow.

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That night the Tooth Fairy arrived and left him a $20 bill.  Clearly, there was a level of dad guilt built into the payout here.  When Goalielocks awoke and found the $20 bill he was ecstatic!  Even though he had gotten up early to get to school, he was dancing around happily.  Since he’s not a morning person, much like his mom, this was quite the sight to be seen.  He simply couldn’t believe that he got $20 for the tooth we lost.

As we laid Goalielocks down to bed the next night, it dawned on him that perhaps he should write the Tooth Fairy another note.  He did and again she was quite generous with her payout.  He continued his new nightly tradition of writing a note,  “I lost a tooth, but I lost it,” and kept getting paid.  Yep folks the dad guilt here for losing the tooth was serious.  Finally, after I shared the story with my colleagues,  one of my co-workers volunteered to write a note from the Tooth Fairy to Colin.  Thankfully, that well written note from the Tooth Fairy put an end to the nightly notes to the Tooth Fairy.  Lesson learned that our kids are quite industrious and parent guild definitely exists.

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Blink Of An Eye

Tonight the Mayor and I were listening to music and it reminded of how time flies with the blink of an eye. We were listening to Nirvana, Bush, Green Day, Tupac. When their music first debuted, much like the Mayor is today, I was in middle school.

So here’s my list of things that pass with the blink of an eye:

1) Your childhood. It’s amazing how slowly the years seem to go by as a youth, but quickly here came adulthood. How lame….

2) Your childrens’ childhood. Okay, I totally call shenanigans on this one. While my childhood flew by, my kids’ youth seems to be moving at light speed! Can somebody put the brakes on all of this? This is total b.s.

3) Your well deserved weekend. No sooner have you blinked on Friday night when Sunday night rears it ugly head. Why can’t Mondays move this fast? How is one supposed to get all the housework, hockey, workouts and errands done when the weekend moves so fast? It’s impossible!

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4) Your long awaited dream vacation. You’ve planned the big vacay and countdown to the departure day. And then you blink and the vacation is over. Why oh why must the fun stuff in life fly by?!?!  Can somebody take me back to Norway?!?!?!

Since all of life’s brilliant moments seem to vanish in the blink of an eye, the key is to cherish and be grateful for these moments. Fortunately, while we cannot stop time, we can appreciate the time we have above ground.

Tonight’s song performed by The Verve is “Bittersweet Symphony.”

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My New Toy

After leaving the nice camera on the shelf for the last year or so I brushed it off, charged its battery and got the lenses ready for graduation.  I bought the T2i for our trip to France back in 2011.   If you’re travelling to Europe or planning any major trip, it is worthwhile to invest in a good camera.    Many museums, cathedrals, castles, palaces and other landmarks prohibit flash photography, so you’ll need a camera that takes good pics in low light.

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Since 2011 my Canon EOS Rebel T2i has served us well, but after 6 years, countless trips to Minnesota, countless hockey tournaments and countless school events culminating with Jake’s graduation it is time to move on.  Truthfully, some of the photos from graduation were a bit cringe worthy.  The T6i comes with an improved lens compared to the T2i.  In addition, the camera is a bit heavy by current standards and lacks the connectivity to smartphones and computers built into the T6i and T7i.

The Canon EOS Rebel T6i can be controlled from my iphone.  No more running and tripping to try and beat the timer when taking a group picture off a tripod.  You can also review and manage images easily on your iphone, which is a huge plus.

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In preparation for my trip overseas, I’ve been playing around with the camera to try and learn the different settings and familiarize myself with it.  Fortunately, my puppies, my guinea pigs  and my kids have been happy to oblige.  My initial review of the Canon Rebel EOS T6i is that it is a huge upgrade compared to the T2i.  It is light, easy to use and easy to navigate the menus.  After my trip I will write a more comprehensive review.   Here are some of the practice pictures.

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Happy Father’s Day!!!

“One father is more than a one hundred schoolmasters.”  This quote from George Herbert, 17th century English poet and orator perfectly sums up the role and the importance of fathers in our children’s lives.  In modern society, we place (with good reason) a lot of emphasis on the importance of motherhood while not always paying much attention to the role a strong father plays.

 

My brothers and I were fortunate to have grown up with a father who was always here for us and instrumental in our lives.  He shared with us his love of music, military history, aviation and Dr. Who.   Give my parents a call today and you may hear his music blaring in the background.

When my mom was working second shift, I learned to cook by helping him make dinner on those days.  I cherish those memories.  My dad has always treated my mom as an equal and has always supported her, her goals and her career.  My dad’s love for my mom and for us kids was always on display.  To this day, my dad still carries the pink comb I gave him when I was in preschool.

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Now that we are older and have kids of our own, our kids get to call him Grandpa.  My oldest brother and I both have kids, who absolutely adore him.  What’s even better is that my kids have a father, who is exceptional.  My hubby is an amazing dad, who is devoted to me and our kids.  He’s volunteered as a coach on their hockey teams since they started in 2010.  Some seasons he’s been on the roster of all three of their travel teams, which is a huge investment of time.

 

He’s taken the time to show them how to fish, how to build and how to be men.  When I work late, he cooks amazing dinners, helps with the homework and takes them to hockey practice.  Our life runs at a crazy pace and without a true partnership, we’d never be able to manage our life successfully. My boys are blessed to call him dad and blessed to have three grandpas, who love them unconditionally.  They are lucky to have so many positive male role models in their lives.

Time to pop a bottle and celebrate all of the dads in our lives.  To all the fathers out gthere, who day in and day out work tirelessly to support their family, happy father’s day!

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