Journal Entry for the Week in Review for August 29 - September 4, 2016

PHOTO:  Ben is practicing his drums in time for something good.
CREDIT:  Zach Irwin

I'm looking forward to a week full of excitement, and anticipation in time for the 2016 football season.  I'm hopeful that my Sun Devils, Chargers, Falcons, and Cardinals somehow all make the postseason.  We'll have to see what happens.  In the meantime, I'll do whatever it takes to foster my sons' creativity both inside and outside the home.




MONDAY:  As it is with all Mondays, I stay home during the day while Kelly works.  I try not to get distracted with TV, my Kindle, and my iPhone.  I try to do my very best with taking care of my boys Ben and Blake.  Ben and I were playing drums.  Actually, it was pretty much all Ben playing drums.  I gave those to him.  I had to pretend to be a drummer with my hands in the air.  I have visions of Ben becoming a good musician. 




I don't remember a whole lot about work today.  Sadly, I remembered the late Gene Wilder.  He passed away recently and I remembered him in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory".  That was one of my favorite movies he starred in.  I don't remember him too well in "Young Frankenstein" and "Silver Streak".  Now it came back to me.  I remember him in the 1974 comedy classic "Blazing Saddles."  He was funny, old, and yet he was taken way too soon.  R.I.P. Gene Wilder.  Since I don't remember anything about work today, I hope to do it again tomorrow and make it memorable.


TUESDAY:  Today was music day in hour home.  At least it was for a while before we had to take Ben to school.  He seems to enjoy school from what his teachers told us last year.  One of my most important jobs is to take Ben to school and get him there safely.  The same thing applies to when I have to pick Ben up from school and get him back home safely.  I can't imagine how I would ever feel if Ben was hurt in a car accident.  I don't even want to think about it.  I'll stop now.


I'm thinking about how close we are to the start of football season.  Four days are left before the first Saturday and 12 days before the start of the first Sunday of the NFL season.  I can't wait. 


See the pictures of my boys holding guitars from the Guitar Hero and Rockband video games.  Before you know it, they'll play with my real guitar.

 

 

 

 

 

There are times where I can make Blake happy.  Other times, I'm pretty useless in that category.  He's going to have a million dollar smile for years to come.  You watch.

 

Try as I may, I did nothing memorable at work today, so I will try yet again to be my best tomorrow.  It's early, but I'm three days away from FRIDAY!!!!!  FRIDAY!!!!!

WEDNESDAY:  I don't remember.  Both boys were home and I had another uneventful day at work.


THURSDAY:  I don't remember again. 

Now I remember.  Ben was in school during the day and Blake was tackling Big Teddy.  I tried to be a good daddy while I was home before I had to pick Ben up from school.  After that, it was off to work.


Today would also mark my last missed opportunity to see my Padres play their last series (and their last game) ever at Turner Field.  My Braves swept the Padres earlier today.


I guess College Football season unofficially kicked off tonight.




FRIDAY:  Today was toy day at the Irwin home.  Check out my pics from earlier in the day before I had to go to work this afternoon.

Journal Entry for the Week in Review for August 15-21, 2016

JURY DUTY DAY

This Monday Morning started with a really early wake-up call for me.  For the first time in my life, I would serve on a Jury.  I didn't know what to expect when I drove up to the Cobb County Superior Court building and entered through security to get into a waiting room.  I didn't know what kind of case I would hear.  I didn't know what to think.  All I knew was I needed to bring in some reading materials to calm me down.

As the day wore on, I was still in the big waiting room in the event that I was to see a case be tried in the Superior Court Building.  I kept reading my articles from the Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Marietta Daily Journal to keep me occupied.  I was still in the holding pattern.  By the time the day was over, I was not in a group to be picked for jury duty.  I got to go home and skip work for the rest of the day.

I was on the understanding that I would have to call in every day this week to see if I was to go serve on a jury.

PHOTO:  CBS46 News Trucks (some familiars for me)

CREDIT:  Zach Irwin

PHOTO:  Ben eating a yummy dinner ABOVE AND BELOW

CREDIT:  Zach Irwin

PHOTO:  Blake enjoying some juice

CREDIT:  Zach Irwin

As the night wore on, I relaxed and played with the guys before they went to bed.  After that,  I had some fun before I went to sleep.  One of the best parts of my night was that I got to go to bed early.  For me, going to bed early consists of falling asleep BEFORE Midnight.  Sweet dreams for me, I hope.

TUESDAY, I resumed my normal routine.  I played with the boys at home before I went to work.  The guys were having a good time with me, and the two pictures below do not do our day justice at all.  I just didn't take many pictures this morning/afternoon.

WEDNESDAY was adventures in mealtime.  I don't remember much about this day other than the fact that they ate pretty well for the most part and that I went to work.  I edited videos all day long and wrote stories for the 11pm newscast.  I think I am getting a little bit better at writing to video and making it conversational to my fellow viewer.  I welcome any feedback from my producers along the way.  Now, I present to you some pictures of my boys.  Most of them include Blake crying at his lunch station, and then taking a good nap afterward.

THURSDAY is a blur to me.  In the three pictures below, I had fun coloring and drawing pictures with my boys.  I think my boys had even more fun making a mess with the crayons.  I think they loved spilling them on the floor and having me pick them up afterward.

FRIDAY was a fun day for our family.  In most of the pictures below, our family got Ben ready for his second year of preschool at Acworth United Methodist Church.  From what I remember, Ben was happy, curious, well-behaved, and happy to be there.  He didn't freak out on us at any time.  The only thing I had to get on him for was when he wanted to turn the lights on and off.  We met Ben's teachers and liked them very much.  I think Ben will be in good hands this coming school year.  Afterward, we celebrated with lunch at a local Mexican restaurant.  I snacked on some chips and salsa and had a couple of Ben's French Fries during my meal.  After that, I got ready for work and then got ready for the weekend. 

SATURDAY:  We took Ben and Blake to a special place for kids to get haircuts in Dallas, GA.  Long story short, it was a disaster.  Ben was crying and he couldn't sit still.  Blake was the same way.  I really thought a place filled with cartoon characters and cartoons on TV would calm my boys down for a haircut.  I couldn't even bribe them with cookies and Cheetos to calm down and sit down.


SUNDAY:  I wanted to be able to relax and enjoy my family before I had to go back to work on Monday.  I got to help Ben make a super domino square.  I tried to make a domino circle, but that was a no-go.  Ben is good at breaking down the dominoes.  I'm amazed how Blake loves drinking his milk.  He's extremely good at holding his bottle and owning it.  I remember all the days I help both Blake and his little bottle as he drank his milk.  Before you know it, I won't be able to do that anymore.  He's going to get good at eating and drinking on his own.


As Blake goes into his milk coma, I'm going to get ready to plan my week ahead.  I love my boys and I'll be the best father I can be going forward.