Friday as you know it.

It's 8:31 p.m. on a friday night. I'm on my couch watching a meaningless college football game, and I love it. Lets talk about this friday night. Friday night used to be "the" night, the night everything happened, but before that it was an even simpler time. Friday night has evolved. When I was a wee little lad I'm sure I saw Friday night as any other night, I still ran around screaming playing with pots and pans before it was time to crash. Once I got old enough to remember things Friday night became a family night. We would get snacks and watch TGIF television. Cosby show, Steve Urkle, and other classics filled our night. Once middle school hit and it wasn't really cool to hang out at home we would spend the night every friday somewhere. My best friend Newman and I spent every single friday night at one of our houses. Friday became the slumber night. Early high school meant Friday night became a night with your buddies and maybe a few girls. This was the bowling night, food at taco bell, nights at the park. Friday became co-ed night. Post drivers license Friday night became date night. Spend the time with the girl if you had one, then meet up with your buddies and spend the rest of the night doing stupid stuff. College meant Friday night was another night to go out and drink. Post college, early career meant that Friday was a night to celebrate, cut loose, and forget the stress from the workplace. Marriage changes Friday night to a night of "what are we going to do?" Friday night all of sudden has expectations of, we need to do something. This turns into ordering food and watching a movie if you stay awake. Then there are the Friday nights with kids. Friday nights with a kid means you don't look for something to do, you look for ways to get food in before it's bed time for the kid so you can go to bed because the bags under your eyes say it's now 8:41 and it's sleep time. On that note, good night Friday.

3 Months

I write a separate blog on McKinley, but I wanted mesh both worlds for this one because I appreciate so much the job my wife does as a mother.

Sept. 12th, marks the three month celebration of that little bundle of cuteness. Since our last entry a great deal has happened in her little world. Much like Will Ferrel in “Elf”, smiling is her favorite. She loves to brighten your day with a flash of her deathly cute smile. I’ve found that it doesn’t matter what is going on in my work world, if she smiles at me it makes everything better. We have found that the car seat is still not her favorite, but it is manageable. Mom crawls into the back a lot to soothe a wailing McKinley.

Mom and Dad had to go back to work recently, leaving Mck home for the first time. Grandma B and W both came down to stay and babysit, even Aunt Lana made the rotation. It turns out this is very easy in comparison with taking her to the babysitter. Laurie Cox has begun watching her at LuLu’s daycare. A tremendous lady that we think the world of. Dad has drop off duty, Mom has pick up duty. It seems like Dad got the short end of the stick because of the heart wrenching act of letting your child go. The first morning I fought off any emotion by avoiding saying goodbye, meanwhile, Mom is crying at school when I arrive......she didn’t even take her! The second day I braved it and said goodbye, McKinley opened her eyes to smile at me and hold my fingers, this about did me in. I almost quit teaching to stay at home.

The baby bjorn has become her favorite mode for travel, mom really enjoys evening walks with her strapped on.

It won’t be long till she is crawling and talking I feel like, she coo’s all the time and is a mover and shaker. The bouncy ball is still a favorite but she actually loves being held face out so she can see everything.

I will say this, McKinley if someday you are reading this I want you to remember one thing. Your Mom gives everything to you. She gives her time, her thoughts, her worries, her love, her tired nights, her days off, and on and on..... If you ever fell the need to get in a fight with your mom, don’t, because you owe her, BIGTIME. There will be a time when you argue with eachother over something so mundane, and I will have to break the tension, but remember this. Every night your mom takes you upstairs, feeds you, gives you a bath, lotions you up, reads a book to you, feeds you again, and puts you to sleep. You never go down without a fight and she is right back up there putting you to sleep. During the night you tend to wake up once, twice, or three times. Your mother, who loves sleep, gets up and feeds you without concern, puts you back to sleep. I come in to put you to sleep when you won’t do it for mom, but it typically ends with your mother coming back in and putting the finishing touches on you. As frustrated as I get, she always takes care of you with such love and tenderness, and trust me your mom has zero patience.

Each morning you are fed then she proceeds to get ready for school, then eat, but you always come first. You have no idea how hard it is for your mom to give up her sleep in the morning and the extra half hour she takes staring at the closet of clothes. Although, I have a distinct feeling you will be just that way too. You see McKinley, you have a dad that loves you very much, I brag about you, I show you off, I hold you and kiss you, but what I do doesn’t compare to what your mother does. So the next time you want to scream “you don’t love me” because your mom took your cell phone away, remember the thousands of times you were read to, diaper changed, rocked and bounced at night just so you were kept happy and loved. We are pretty lucky huh Mck?

Perspective Police

If I became President for a day I would create a special task force called the "Perspective Police". This group of well rounded individuals would have one task, smack some sense into anyone that loses perspective. Let me give you an example. I coach middle school football, 12 year olds to be exact. I lost some perspective on what I actually do for a small time the other day. We lost a game, I was upset, the whole ride home I just wanted to talk to people and complain about this player, this play, this ref, this blah blah.....I lost perspective. The kids I coach forgot about the loss the minute they got back and checked their text inbox. I teach the game of football to these kids, how to do it right, so when winning and losing actually matters they are winners. The Perspective Police should have pulled me over, drag me out of the car and hit me with a garbage bag full of mayo.

Example number two. I teach with great people. Last year our boss shuffled us up and asked us to teach some new things. A couple people couldn't that change and since then have been a center of negativity and whining because they aren't teaching what they want. The perspective police should have shown up at our building, call them down to the office and hit chalky erasers over their heads until we couldn't recognize them. There are hundreds of teachers being laid off a year that would kill to teach anything....get some perspective.

example number 3. I am starting to teach my students by using their cell phones in class. Sounds crazy, but it's not, the crazy thing is that we don't do it already. I asked parents for their permission/consent. I had a dad email me a 4 paragraph message basically telling me that I am forcing him to buy his kid a cell phone and I am hurting this generations ability to communicate. For the first time in my seven year career I feel like I've found the key to unlock their complete interest. I'm speaking their language and they are crazy about the idea of learning like this. The perspective police should have knocked on this dad's door and thrown Zack Morris size cell phones at him. His son is a part of a class that is 100% looking towards class over the weekend, get some perspective.

The perspective police would get most of their work from parents of young athletes. So many parents have unrealistic expectations and beliefs about their son/daughter's ability. Anytime a parent acts just absurd, the P. Police would show up with gatorade coolers full of grape jelly they would dump on them. Get some perspective and let your kid be a kid.

The athlete that holds a press conference at the age of 18 to choose between three hats as a method of announcing his collegiate choice would be top offenders on the P.Police list. As soon as the hat was placed on the head the P.P. would shoot a watermelon at them from a potato gun. Get some perspective, just go play.

The perspective police would have knocked on all of our doors at some point. We all have lost perspective at least once in our life of what is important. Too often we consume our time and thoughts with the junk that isn't. Ask someone to be your Perspective Police to keep you in check. Have an agreement that they get to call you out when you lose perspective and you can't argue with them or feel hurt, because they are saving your conscious some late night worrying.