A Quick Thank You Note

I am sending this note to my two boys, Grant and TJ, who went to Orlando and Disney's Hollywood Studios over the weekend.

Boys, thank you. Thank you for being so easy going and carefree during the trip. Thank you for going with the flow on a hot day in the park with your mom and grandmother and I. Thank you for not screaming for treats, or toys, or to wait on line for rides that were too long. Thank you for enjoying the time we did have to go to the pool, sit on the beach and watch a movie, go looking for hidden Mickey's and for thinking those things were cool to do.

When I see other kids acting the polar opposite of your behavior I feel bad for the parents who spent a fortune going to Orlando, the kids who had too much sugar and not enough sleep, and everyone within ear shot who has to endure their crying and tantruming (kids and parents). Vacations are supposed to be fun and make fun memories instead of making everyone miserable and looking forward to going home. You both made the trip very enjoyable and we weren't looking forward to going home yet at all.

Grant, thank you for being all smiles and hanging out in your stroller for most of the day. We all know you wanted to impress us with your crawling skills! That you didn't freak out when a six foot tall Piglet approached and kissed you on the cheek was appreciated. You went to bed for grandma so that your big brother could go back into the park with mommy and daddy - that was very nice of you.

TJ, I especially want to thank you for going on the Hollywood Tower of Terror thinking it was only a roller coaster that went straight up and down. That, and for not crying until after the ride was over. Your face, frozen in terror, was priceless. Mommy and daddy won't trick you like that again no matter how much we laugh. Maybe. You were awesome on the Star Tours ride even if you didn't get to fight Darth Vader in person.

You are both really great kids to take places.

Summertime Pictures

Happy 4th of July!

Pool Time

Atlantic Beach

Cutie Patootie

The summer is almost over and there are many stories to tell!  Grant and TJ have both grown so much and Samantha is 14 already! Until we have some time to unwind from family visits, and Camp, and the summer mayhem - here are some pictures from the last three months.

Enjoy! 

All the Children Together

Learning to Ride

Teenagers! Aaughh!!

Scientists tell us that the brain of an adolescent child is actually being "rewired" though the difficult and awkward years of puberty.

I need to remind myself of that when dealing with Samantha. I mean on the surface, what an awesome kid; honor student, athlete, musician, good looking. However, half an inch under that skull - maybe its thicker than that - all hell is breaking loose.

For example; while Samantha is at Camp she spends a lot of time on the water sailing. In order to get to the water she needs to wade into the Neuse River. Now, last year she cut the bottom of her foot because she did not wear river shoes, so this year we offered to get her a pair of crocs. She confidently declined stating that she would wear her Sperrys. Except she didn't. Guess what happened last week? She cut her foot in the river. Why? She didn't learn her lesson from last year. Guess what she did the very next day - the VERY NEXT DAY?! She cut her other foot in the river. Teenagers!


That's a less-than-complicated example. The more complicated example has to do with telling whoppers of lies for the edification of others. Did you know that my daughter has told her FaceBook friends that she jumps outs out of airplanes with me and my paratroopers?! And it turns out that she is putting together a jump for all of her friends to come to Ft. Bragg and jump with me too! Ugh, teenagers!


I am not going to try to rewind my tape thirty years and try to remember what I was like at 14. I am sure that I was goofy too. More so, probably. The frustrating part about - well, okay, there are several frustrating parts - is that Samantha is very cool without the fabrication. She sails, she shoots, she goes on trips, she has opportunities and two successful parents, and she is loved by everyone; so why invent more than that? The other frustrating piece is that I don't know if she will listen to good, solid parental advice. We see so much looking back over our life's experiences that we implore our children to do the right thing and avoid the mistakes we made.

However, live is experiential and has to be lived as opposed to taught and learned. And if that means getting your feet cut a couple of times, well, that's what it might take. Ugh, teenagers - love 'em.