He's Still The Tornado

6 weeks down, 17 years and 8 months of school for The Tornado to go. These first 6 weeks have been a bumpy ride, with multiple letters home from the teacher, tears and lies. We've talked to the teacher, and apparently he thinks he can punch his way to what he wants. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't yet understand that the teacher tells us when something isn't right.

We've talked with him about using his hands in a helping way, not a hurting way. We've talked to him about trying to enjoy being at school. Sometimes it can be so exhausting. The teacher also taught the girls, and says how different they were from him. She actually said to me,"He's either a real joy to be around, or.......he's not." Well yeah, of course he's different! And boy does that sound familiar. I actually described the Bear that way to someone back when she was his age, and that person looked at me and said, "So she's just like her father?" Is it a coincidence that the two kids I spent most of my time with are that way? Is it a coincidence that the one who spent some time with me, some with Grandma and Grandpa, and a little at day care is the more easy going one? I honestly don't know.

I'm sure he will find his groove, and settle in as the wonderfully happy guy we all know he is. It just might feel a little like storm chasing until we get there.

The St. Louis Zoo

On Tuesday the 29th we packed our things and headed out for some breakfast. Everyone was excited because we were going to the St. Louis Zoo, one of the best zoos in the country. It was a nice day, so we were sure we were going to have fun.

We saw some spectacular animals, including bears, giraffes, some really cool birds, hysterical monkeys and terrifying reptiles. We got to pet a real giraffe tail, and the kids loved seeing the peacocks just wandering around the zoo.

But the coolest part of the zoo, figuratively and literally, was the penguin exhibit. You enter a room, and it's freezing cold, and there are penguins EVERYWHERE! All different kinds of penguins too, emperor penguins, rockhoppers, puffins, you name it. They are swimming around, standing guard over the fish bucket, or just keeping watch on the rocks. You can reach out and touch them if you wanted to, they are that close to you. It was really fun to be able to be so close to something, with no glass or walls between you, that is so different and unusual. Penguins are something I'll never see in the wild, as I doubt I'll make it to Antarctica! I could have stayed in there for hours and just watched them.

As we started to leave, the kids saw a penny maker, one of those souvenir things that squishes a penny with a logo of the place you are visiting on it. We let them all get one, then found these penny books, which hold something like 36 pennies! Instantly the search for penny machines would become a focal point of the trip. They slipped their pennies into the books, and we slipped back in the car for the 4 hour drive across Missouri to Kansas City.

We had a wonderful time in St. Louis, that's for certain. We all the love the beach, and even though St. Louis is far far away from one, I think everyone left thinking this would be a fun place to come back and visit. I couldn't believe how much we got done in only 36 hours, but we loved every minute of it!

My New Position

For months I wondered what I would do once the Tornado left for school. How would I fill the day, what would I look forward to, just for me, each day. Well, a phone call came while we were out on our trip, and it was from the coach of the 7th/8th grade coach at SFX. He said he needed to talk to me, and I had a good idea what he wanted to talk about. Turns out I was right, he was looking for an assistant coach at his new job, Head Coach at the local high school for the girls varsity team.

I was flattered that he would ask me, and I was immediately interested. After interviewing with the AD, and meeting some of the girls on the team, I was excited to do it. Then, after a meeting with the AD and the principal, the AD told me this would mean not coaching the 5th/6th girls team, and not coaching the High Hoops team. I knew I couldn't coach 8th graders, but 5th and 6th graders too?

I was torn between wanting to take on this new challenge, and feeling like I was letting the girls from the High Hoops team, and Frank (the co-coach of that team) down. I had never had such a good experience coaching as I did with the High Hoops team. They worked hard, they listened, the played together, just a treat to coach. Would I regret giving that up? I called Frank and he basically told me I had to try the high school job, that who knows when that would become available again. The CEO said the same thing. Frank assured me he wasn't upset, and that he would be able to get someone else to fill in as needed. I explained to O why I did it, so I can coach her and the Bear in high school, and while upset she understood. She knows Coach Frank is a super guy, and knows she'll enjoy the team.

I've been doing the conditioning sessions with the high school team for about a month now, and it's been very enjoyable. The girls have been mostly excellent to work with, and most of them really work hard. We've had to give a couple "let's focus" speeches, but that's to be expected. I'm looking forward to practices and games starting, and seeing how both Mark and I respond to the new level of intensity. I'm anxious about it, but that's the way I am. It might take a little while for us to get a good thing going, but we both work hard at it, and we care about the kids, and I think that will serve us well in the long run.

As my Mom and Dad always say, there is a plan, God is watching over us. One door closed and another one has opened. I'm happy for this opportunity and am curious about where this path will lead.

Stan the Man and Fredbird

After a brief stop at the hotel, we headed over to Busch Stadium for the Cardinals game. We waded outside for a little, admiring the many statues they have outside the ballpark. The girls asked questions about Lou Brock, Red Schoendienst, Bob Gibson and Stan Musial. I told them about the players, and that Musial was Grandpops favorite player. What is interesting about that is that for some reason, Bear's favorite player is Albert Pujols. She has read a couple books about him, has a couple of his cards and was very excited to see him play. A little treat for Bear was the we got to see El Hombre play 3 times on the trip. Musial is a legend of course in St Louis, and his stats and bio are all over the stadium. It was nice to see such a display of history.

We popped into the team store so the Bear could add to her mascot collection, then took a tour of the stadium. They had a fun little area for kids, O and I couldn't figure out how to play the xBox baseball game, while the other two played on the mini playground. We walked to our seats, down the right field line, and settled in. Not more than 5 minutes passed, and there was an announcement that Fredbird would be standing for pictures on the opposite side of the stadium for the first two innings. ARGH!! I walked the Tornado and the Bear down to see him, and we got our picture taken with the Cardinal mascot. The kids were excited and happy that they got to see him up close. It's so neat to see the kids that way.

The game progressed, a great pitching matchup between Dan Haren of the Diamondbacks and Chris Carpenter for the Cards, the Cards were losing. The chants of "charge", were kind of weak and hollow, and O said "this is supposed to be the best baseball city in America?? C'mon people!" I had to laugh, seeing as how her main experience is with 15,000 other fans at the Rays games we attend. But then, the Cards exploded for 4 runs in the bottom of the 9th to win the game 5-4, and the place went crazy!! O responded "that's better". She's so funny.

We walked around and took some more pictures, then walked back across the street to our hotel. The Diamondbacks were staying in our hotel, and lots of fans were in the lobby waiting for players to enter. We saw a few players leaving the ballpark, the girls wanted to see Justin Upton. I took the Tornado up to the room, and the girls hung out downstairs with the CEO for a couple minutes before retreating back to the room, not having seen anyone.

But it was a tremendous day, full of wide-eyed enthusiasm for all the new things we had experienced. For some reason, this day kind of felt like the beginning of the trip, and that we had lots more excitement and learning in front of us!

SHOW ME!

We staggered out of bed Monday morning, after a long Sunday, and set out for another full day. We had planned on visiting the Arch, and then a Cardinals game at night. First we grabbed breakfast/lunch at a local restaurant, then walked to the park and the Arch. The people of St. Louis were all so nice, in fact an usher at the Reds game told us we would be amazed at how nice everyone was. And she was right! While it was a little hot, everyone was doing well with that and the walking. I don't know if it was because they were excited to be in a new place, or what, but all the kids really got along great. It was so nice to spend the fun time with them, when they were all so happy to be together. As we walked around the city, I told the kids that their Aunt was born in St. Louis, and that I had lived there when I was just a little boy. They thought that was cool.

We got to the Arch and it was fantastic! There is a tunnel that runs underground between the two legs, that is 630 feet wide. Underneath, they have a wonderful museum that depicts Lewis and Clarks' travels across America. Since that was going to be a large part of our future travels on the trip, it was a real treat to see the kids point out and ask questions about whether we were going to this place or that.

After about 90 minutes, it was our turn to get in line to ride the tram to the top. They have a Disney-like setup, where you wait in this area for a while, then in that area for a while, then in the last area for a while. That was pretty tedious, but the kids hung in there great. Although the Bear did have some strange film on the inside of her mouth, we never did figure out where that came from. Anyway, we finally got to the trams, and HOLY COW WERE THEY TINY!! We barely fit all five of us into the compartment, and that was with the CEO and I leaning forward the whole time. The ride took about 5 minutes, and then there we were, 630 feet in the sky, looking over the city of St. Louis! The view was spectacular, even though the CEO felt a little uneasy. We stayed up top for about 15 minutes, pointing out different things in the city, we had a great view of the park and our hotel, and the Mississippi River. Satisfied that we had seen it all, we got back in the tram car and rode to the bottom.

Next we left the Arch and walked over to the Mississippi River, which is right next to the Arch. The river was really high, the kids couldn't believe it. They dipped their feet into the water, splashed for a minute or two, and it was back to the hotel to get ready for the game.

It was a special afternoon, watching them learn so much about St. Louis, and really enjoying the learning. Running in the park, darting from one part of the museum to the next, gaping out the windows to see down below. It was special too because I enjoyed learning about those things too. Of course, as the Bear always says though, the best part was sharing it with my family.

The Next Chapter Begins

So we are done with the first two weeks of school, and what an eventful two weeks it was! Let's take them one at a time.

First, the Tornado had his first full week of school. He's pulling the same routine with the socks/shoes that Bear pulled everyday. I told him he was out of luck because I had extensive experience dealing with this tactic. He's apparently doing well in school, with the possible exception of sharing. Yes he's one of three kids, but since he's the only boy and with 4 years in between, it's as if he's an only child. He relayed a story to me about his teacher telling him to get more rest one night so that tomorrow wasn't such a "big deal".

One thing I've learned though, is that changes can be a big deal, particularly for a little kid. He asked me why I wouldn't help put his socks on for him anymore. Well, you are in school now and you are a big guy who needs to do it for himself. He responds, but you just did it the other day?? I didn't really consider how much adjusting he would need to do going full time. He's had to grow up so much all at once, and I think he's had a little bit of a struggle doing that, and it's been a little bit of a struggle letting him do it.

On to the Bear. Her teacher is probably the most soft spoken person in the school, but somehow she's managed to butt heads with the teacher, at least in her mind. She's feeling pretty good about herself these days, as she knows how good of an athlete she is; she's popular with the other kids, including the boys; and she does well in school. Despite these things, she's always looking for attention it seems. I can't figure it out, and I'm hoping it calms down a little as she gets older.

Adding to her self-esteem, she won an election to become a class representative. She won in an old fashioned run off, where the teacher counted the run off votes, one by one, aloud. The Bear came out on top, I can't imagine the devastation that would have occurred had she lost so publicly. But she won, so all is well in the land of the Bear.

As for O, it's been a rough two weeks. First, she started middle school, and part of that change is that she changes classes/teachers every period. This wouldn't seem to be a big deal, but she likes her routine, and this different schedule every day has thrown her for a loop.

Secondly, she tried out for the volleyball team on the 3rd and 4th days of school, and got cut. Never mind that she has never played volleyball, never practiced it, so not a huge surprise that she didn't make it. This turn of events did present an opportunity for me to discuss working for things you want, preparation, and enjoying what you do. She told me she enjoyed doing the triathlons, and missed that we haven't done any lately. So by the end of the next day i had a training schedule put together, and we've been working that. I love going out there with her and spending time exercising. It's a great time to let them talk and just listen, she opens up so much more.

Finally, O lost out in her bid for class representative. She's in a mixed home room with 7th and 8th graders, and two older kids won. She understands it, but mix in that her sister did win, and it sure hurt. One of the kids who won has been giving her a hard time at her locker every day too. That was a little salt in the wound. We talked through a strategy to try to avoid him, and hopefully this issue will go away. 6th grade was my least favorite year of school - I told O that maybe we hit the refresh button and say 6th grade starts for real tomorrow. Here's hoping it works!

The CEO has been going through lots of changes at work, personnel, workflow, all kinds of stuff. That's always disconcerting, and I would imagine even more so as the sole breadwinner. She's a trooper, and tries to never bring home that stress, but it's been bothering her. I do my best to be a good listener, and I hope that it helps.

For me, the last two weeks have been an adjustment too. The house is so quiet during the day now. I've been able to get back to running, and I'm working a lot in the yard. I started my new part time job, which I'll describe in the next post. I get excited when I'm in car line and I see the three of them running to the car. I love hearing their voices when the door opens and they jump in. I love seeing their smiles when they see me. There's a comfort that I have being with them, a good feeling that I can't get anywhere else (and I mean everyone in the family). I hope I provide that for them as well.

Now Go Have an Adventure!

The day is finally here. Honestly, I never really thought it would come. For almost 5 years, pretty much 5 days of every week, for 8 hours every day, it was just me and the Tornado.

I know how blessed I was to have that time. As my friend told me, most Dads don't get to spend that much time with their kids their entire life. And that's true; to be at home with him, see all of his firsts, be there for so many ups and downs was a gift.

But mostly it was just the time together, actually just BEING together, that I treasure the most. I kept trying to think of something to do with our final day before school started, something really really special. As I thought more about it, I realized it was just the togetherness that is what I wanted to celebrate. So we woke up and had breakfast together. Then we watched a couple episodes of Phineas and Ferb while cuddling on the couch. We had a little snack, then we built some train tracks, as we did pretty much every day. We played for a while on the playstation, and had some lunch (SpongeBob mac & cheese!). We played football catch, hit some baseballs, then came in and read some books. Then it was time to pick up the girls from school, and our time as just Daddy and the Tornado was over.

At bed time I went to tuck him in, and read Zen Shorts to him. After the book, I laid down for a minute and told him how much fun he would have at school. How he was going to make some great friends, and learn lots of fantastic things. He looked at me and started to cry. I tired not to cry too, it was really tough. Then he said,"I'm gonna miss you when I'm in school." I lost it. I gave him a big hug, and told him how much I loved him, and left the room. Mommy went in and talked with him for a little. I went back in after regaining some composure, and told him we could still build tracks and play baseball and all that good stuff every day. He said OK, and smiled, and rolled over.

Mommy and I dropped him off this morning (after saying his shoes didn't feel right - ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!), and he ran to see his good friend Gray. He dropped his stuff in his cubby, and hustled to the ring toss game. Then to the cars and blocks. He was trying to get Gray to play with him, but Gray was having a tough moment leaving his Mom. After a few minutes, they were doing their thing together, big smiles and wide eyes. The teacher told them all to sit as school was ready to begin, and time for us to leave. One last hug and off we went.

I am so happy for him! He hasn't had his own friends for so long, and I know he's gonna love it. That doesn't make it any easier for me unfortunately. When I walked back into the empty house, and didn't hear "can I watch my show", or "can I have a snack", or "wanna play football catch", I felt sad. I know it will pass, and I'll find something to fill the time. But nothing will fill the light of joy I've had every day spending time with my son. I love you buddy, now go have an adventure!!