Jan 26 2012

Pooping in my pants was one of my earliest memories growing up, when I was 4 (I was the fourth child of 5 kids.) You might think, “So what? My child did that all the time at 4”. I would agree, my son (who is 4) has ‘accidents’ and I figured out last year in our Holiday Letter, when we had 3 kids still in diapers that we probably collected or changed over 1 ton of diapers the previous year…. But, I was fully potty-trained and conscious of my actions.

This was a premeditated act of attention, carefully diagrammed in my mind and carried out with precision to garner a cry for ‘notice me now’! Sure, it worked – but it also backfired, my older brothers and sister had a GREAT laugh at my expense, my mother made me take a bath in the middle of the day(ugh!) and my baby sister still got all of the attention from my mom. Not the reaction – I was going for.

Hit fast-forward on my LIFE-DVD(or Blu-ray, if you have made that technical advancement) and you’ll see me skimming through life… having a great time, being loved by my family, wearing my brother’s hand-me-downs, blowing out candles at birthdays, skinning my knee, getting stitches in my head(again), vacationing in Kearney, Nebraska, playing sports, playing with friends, being loved, it would be obvious to anyone watching this glimpse of my life that it was a good life.

I am now married to a beautiful woman who I met in High School over 25 years ago(did you see the part in the fast-forward where we went to Homecoming in a red Porche? Awesome!), we have 5 children, 2 Pugs and our life is hectic and exciting. We are blessed.

But, as adults and parents, we learn from our experiences growing up and it shapes how we want OUR children to live and grow. In the fast-forward of my life, I want to take ALL of the love and happiness I had and pass it onto my children and family. The stuff my wife and I DIDN’T have growing up… we want our children to have that as well.

My wife, growing up had even less… Her family lived with her Grandparents for a while. She received very little and didn’t get much extra and she heard, ‘No’, a lot. So it is almost Vital to her that her children get the ‘Yes’ from us, when she received a ‘No’ from her parents.

• Choir trip to New York City? – Yes.
• Cheerleading trip to Orlando? – Yes.
• Birthday Parties at “Lost in Fun”? – Yes.
• Vacations to Disney World? – Yes.

…and the list goes on, believe me.

As Valentine’s Day approaches and I was making a list of ALL of the things my family does I noticed that my wife seems to say, ‘yes’ to everyone but herself. Where is the EXTRA for her? Why is she still not getting the resounding, ‘YES’ from her husband and children? This year, I’m going to do something special(my secret). Would she love a massage, wine, the frosting from the cupcakes and someone to clean our house? Of course, but we don’t live near Marion, Iowa and we can’t take advantage of this option that Absolutely Clean has put together.

I think what Stephanie and Absolutely Clean does for the community is great! I am a strong believer in, “Time in a Bottle” the help it provides and the time it saves for the families that they clean for… Do something special for the one you love this Valentine’s Day! I’m sure Stephanie would love to spoil your wife or you with her Valentine’s Day Special Package – but, if that doesn’t work into your budget, or you live too far away, then just say, “YES” to something else.

I’ll be married for 20 years this summer and sometime I STILL don’t ‘get it’. Help us GUYS out, sometimes we are a little dense about this stuff. Do something to get our attention – even if you have to ‘poop in your pants’ (I wouldn’t suggest it, you might not get the reaction you hoped for – take it from me.)

Be noticed this Valentine’s Day and let someone say, ‘YES’ to you, for once.