On Sunday it will be two years since taking custody of Priya. I can't believe it's been 2 years. Honestly. I'll never forget the first day I met that kid. I had to go to India early due to some issues with the court that weren't getting resolved. Her orphanage was inside of a state hospital. State hospital's in India are not fun places and it's hard to see so many people suffering. It took 45 minutes to find the actual orphanage once we were inside. Luckily I had the driver with me or I would never have found it.
Finally the moment came that I got to meet her. Her name was Shourya at that time. I am glad we changed it. There are people here who have a hard time pronouncing Priya for some reason so I can only imagine what she would be going through with Shourya. Still that name is better then 75% of the names we give kids in Utah.
She wasn't sure what to think about me at first. It's weird for a lot of these kids to see a white guy for the first time, especially a huge white guy. I brought her a coloring book and crayons and she liked that. She showed me how she liked to dance and she gave me a kiss but wouldn't sit on my lap. After a few hours I went back to the hotel. The next day I came back again with a ball that lit up. She absolutely loved that. It was amazing to sit and play with her knowing what chances she would have in the US that she wouldn't necessarily have in India. That's nothing against India. It's an absolutely amazing place with amazing people and I honestly believe everyone should visit there was in their life. I just knew we had the means to help her now and was filled with gratitude for that.
When I left that second day she started to cry. That was one of the most horrible moments of my life. I knew that I was leaving her there in the orphanage while I went back to the 5 star hotel I was staying in. I also knew there was nothing I could do about it but wow I felt like a piece of garbage.
I came back every day to spend time with her and every day she would cry when I left.
Finally the day came to take custody of her. She was a little scared at first but she calmed down. I'll never forget the moment we walked into the hotel she looked up and said, "Wow!". She had a bath and then all she wanted to do was stand by the window and look out at the city.
That kid constantly amazes me. She is so sweet and loving but doesn't take crap from people and will tell you exactly what she thinks. She's been through a tremendous amount in her short life and it doesn't seem to bother her.
I've loved seeing how Mirinda and Priya have bonded too. Both have helped each other out. Mirinda watches out for Priya and takes care of her. Priya has taught Mirinda how to use her imagination and role play better.
If you've ever considered adoption I highly recommend it.
To celebrate the adoption day we're doing a staycation downtown. It's going to be a lot of fun. Initially we were going to go to St George but we realized we're going to Disney World in April so it was a better idea to save the money for that trip. The girls can't wait to go to Disney World. I'm excited too. The thing about Disney World is you can't wrap your head around it. There's so much stuff to do you won't be able to get it all done. There's so many places to eat as well. The trick is to just relax and let the kids have fun.
That's really the trick with going to Disneyland or Disney World. If you try to do everything you're going to be miserable. So either go for enough time that you can do everything or just be content with what you are doing. If the kids want to play in Toon Town for hours let them. You're building memories.
I don't think I ever gave an update on the Elsa powers that Priya wants. They have a toy now that you can wear on your wrist that will either shoot out water for silly string. She's getting that for her birthday but she wants it now and bugs me every time she sees one in the store. I keep saying that her birthday is coming soon but it falls on deaf ears. I am afraid that she's going to use the toy to find some way to kill me. If she does please avenge me.
My buddy Jim Bob and I are going to be starting a home delivery premium ice cream business. If you haven't seen or heard of this before you order pints of ice cream. It's especially fun for birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, special events, etc. The problem is if you've ever looked at these deals online they are ridiculously expensive. We can do it a lot cheaper and (not to blow my own horn) I'm quite good at making ice cream. We can really do any flavor you can think of and it will be delivered to your home. We're even thinking about doing a subscription kind of thing. We'll get more details out when we have them but if you have something coming up and would like to purchase some, let me know.
As always thanks for reading! And don't forget to avenge me.
Friday, February 28, 2020
Friday, February 21, 2020
The Cast is Off and Daddy Coach
The cast is off and Priya couldn't be happier about it. She's a little tender but is enjoying walking around without a weight on her foot. Let the good times roll now. Their best friends love to go to Airborne. There's a new one in The District. I told the girls we'd go once Priya's leg is feeling better and they're pretty stoked about it.
I can't figure out dinner with these girls. Mostly Priya. I will make something and it is a hit and the next night she won't eat any of it. It makes no sense. Last night I made french toast. The last time I made french toast they didn't really like it. This time they both at the whole thing. I also made BBQ pork this week. Last time I made it Priya loved it. This time she would hardly eat any of it. These girls haven't gained any weight in like 5 years. They're both still at their birth weight. Mirinda is 33 pounds. I need her to gain 7 more pounds so we can stop using these stupid car seats. I get that they're safe and necessary. The problem is these kids never stop moving. Whatever food I do give them gets burned off like tissue paper in a fire. This is a good thing that they're active and love to do stuff. All I'm asking is for 7 pounds right now and then she can wait another 5 years to gain more weight. I wonder if I put a 7 pound weighted vest on her. Would that work? I'm afraid to Google it.
I rode in the back of a hatchback Honda Civic when I was a kid. There was a bill in the legislature in Utah to require kids to be in a car seat until they were 12 years old. Seriously? At 12 years old I was 6 feet tall and had a full beard. I always hate when the legislature starts meeting because we have the worst bills come up for a vote and then it becomes national news. It's always some hick legislature who had a buddy who had a problem once and now we have to have some ridiculous legislation around this one problem their buddy had.
Since getting Mirinda and Priya I've noticed how good of a throwing arm both of them have. They have great aim and can throw a ball a long way. I've thought about putting them in tee-ball for a while. Last year Priya was having her hip surgery and I didn't know how bad it was going to be so I was worried about putting Mirinda in and not giving her the attention she needed for it, and worried that Priya would be upset that she couldn't play. So I decided to wait a year. This year I showed them a couple of YouTube videos about tee-ball and asked them if they wanted to play. They both were enthusiastic about it so I signed them up. They're going to be on the same team which is easier and better. Mirinda is so small some of the younger kids on the team are going to be bigger then she is.
I came home to tell them I signed them up and they asked who was going to teach them. I told them I play baseball and would teach them and they would have a coach to teach them as well. There's an episode of Peppa Pig where her dad comes to teach the class basketball and Peppa calls him Daddy Coach. The girls asked if I could be Daddy Coach. I said sure I'd volunteer. I figured I'd be an assistant coach and it would be a lot of fun to do that with the girls. I emailed the head guy to let him know I'm interested. He immediately responded and said, "Great! I'll put you down as the head coach of the tee-ball team for the 3-5 year olds." So I'm the head coach now. The girls are super excited. I've been going to YouTube to find drills for a tee-ball team. It will be interesting. If anyone has any Valium let me know. Or whiskey.
I'm super excited this week because the podcast is going to be on the Radio Ronin network. If you don't know what Radio Ronin is, it's a podcast network started by Jimmy Chunga. He was on 107.5 The End and 101.9 The End back in the day. I have been a fan of his for 20 years and one of my dreams has always been to work with him in some way. When he said yes we could be on the network we were at Cold Stone. I'm pretty sure I jumped up on the table and reenacted the bar scene from PeeWee's Big Adventure. If you haven't listened to Radio Ronin it's a really funny podcast. They talk about everything. And now you can listen to us on there. Or you can in a few weeks.
As always thanks for reading!
I can't figure out dinner with these girls. Mostly Priya. I will make something and it is a hit and the next night she won't eat any of it. It makes no sense. Last night I made french toast. The last time I made french toast they didn't really like it. This time they both at the whole thing. I also made BBQ pork this week. Last time I made it Priya loved it. This time she would hardly eat any of it. These girls haven't gained any weight in like 5 years. They're both still at their birth weight. Mirinda is 33 pounds. I need her to gain 7 more pounds so we can stop using these stupid car seats. I get that they're safe and necessary. The problem is these kids never stop moving. Whatever food I do give them gets burned off like tissue paper in a fire. This is a good thing that they're active and love to do stuff. All I'm asking is for 7 pounds right now and then she can wait another 5 years to gain more weight. I wonder if I put a 7 pound weighted vest on her. Would that work? I'm afraid to Google it.
I rode in the back of a hatchback Honda Civic when I was a kid. There was a bill in the legislature in Utah to require kids to be in a car seat until they were 12 years old. Seriously? At 12 years old I was 6 feet tall and had a full beard. I always hate when the legislature starts meeting because we have the worst bills come up for a vote and then it becomes national news. It's always some hick legislature who had a buddy who had a problem once and now we have to have some ridiculous legislation around this one problem their buddy had.
Since getting Mirinda and Priya I've noticed how good of a throwing arm both of them have. They have great aim and can throw a ball a long way. I've thought about putting them in tee-ball for a while. Last year Priya was having her hip surgery and I didn't know how bad it was going to be so I was worried about putting Mirinda in and not giving her the attention she needed for it, and worried that Priya would be upset that she couldn't play. So I decided to wait a year. This year I showed them a couple of YouTube videos about tee-ball and asked them if they wanted to play. They both were enthusiastic about it so I signed them up. They're going to be on the same team which is easier and better. Mirinda is so small some of the younger kids on the team are going to be bigger then she is.
I came home to tell them I signed them up and they asked who was going to teach them. I told them I play baseball and would teach them and they would have a coach to teach them as well. There's an episode of Peppa Pig where her dad comes to teach the class basketball and Peppa calls him Daddy Coach. The girls asked if I could be Daddy Coach. I said sure I'd volunteer. I figured I'd be an assistant coach and it would be a lot of fun to do that with the girls. I emailed the head guy to let him know I'm interested. He immediately responded and said, "Great! I'll put you down as the head coach of the tee-ball team for the 3-5 year olds." So I'm the head coach now. The girls are super excited. I've been going to YouTube to find drills for a tee-ball team. It will be interesting. If anyone has any Valium let me know. Or whiskey.
I'm super excited this week because the podcast is going to be on the Radio Ronin network. If you don't know what Radio Ronin is, it's a podcast network started by Jimmy Chunga. He was on 107.5 The End and 101.9 The End back in the day. I have been a fan of his for 20 years and one of my dreams has always been to work with him in some way. When he said yes we could be on the network we were at Cold Stone. I'm pretty sure I jumped up on the table and reenacted the bar scene from PeeWee's Big Adventure. If you haven't listened to Radio Ronin it's a really funny podcast. They talk about everything. And now you can listen to us on there. Or you can in a few weeks.
As always thanks for reading!
Friday, February 14, 2020
Pooping Toys for Valentine's
I never thought I'd be buying a walking poop toy that poops out candy but there I was at Smith's this morning buying a walking poop toy that poops out candy. The girls were so happy with it. Their nickname for me is poopy daddy. I can't tell if it's endearing or derogatory. I'm going to go with some from column A and some from column B. I just wish I was in the meeting where someone pitched that toy idea. Then I think why can't I come up with stuff like that. I think I'll call the suicide hotline and ask them.
The girls are very excited about Valentine's day. I remember how much fun it was in school too. Unless you got the antacid hearts. There was always a kid that brought them in for everyone. When you have a box of candy that mixes flavors like wintergreen and lemon, you should really rethink you're career path. And if you're the parent who bought those for your kid to take shame on you. Also shame on you if you bought them a Whitman's Sampler. The Whitman's Sampler was forged by the devil himself.
Really though Valentine's candy is not great. Next to the Valentine's candy they had already set up kiosks for Easter candy. That's where it's at. That Cadbury Creme Egg will put you right into a diabetic shock. I eat one a year and I'm good. That should be the next internet challenge to see if you can eat two of those in a day and still be conscious.
Priya gets her cast off next Thursday. On a daily basis she tells me how much she doesn't like her surgery. I don't blame her. I can't wait for the cast to come off just so the tantrums will subside. Right now it's separation anxiety from me. She freaks out anytime I need to leave. It was a 45 minute tantrum on Wednesday because I needed to go record the podcast. (Why yes I have a podcast. You should listen to it. And share it. And comment. It will change your life for the better. Or not. At the very least it will kill 10 minutes.) She didn't want me to go but she didn't want to come with me. She finally calmed down and we had a talk later that night about not ever doing that again. We'll see.
The interesting thing is the different ways the girls have tantrums. Both are extremely stubborn which is good in a lot of ways. With Mirinda though you can reason with her after you get her to calm down. You can't reason with Priya. However 10 minutes later they're both as sweet as can be.
They gave me a huge Valentine card and they had both written sentences on it which is so cool. You get used to reading and writing everything for them and all of the sudden they can do it on their own. It's a weird feeling. I heard someone describe raising children as having a dog who slowly learns to talk, read and write. Somewhat accurate.
If you have back pain you should be doing yoga. Seriously. Mirinda and I do it every night now and I have been amazed at how much less pain I have from sciatica. We do one that focuses on core for 15 minutes and I feel amazing afterwards. Mirinda asks to do it because she loves it so much. I've had sciatica for 3 years in May. Since them I've met with my doctor, done physical therapy, cortisone shots, seen a chiropractor, went to an acupuncturist and did ozone therapy. The cortisone worked but only for 3 months. The ozone therapy did help but after a little while it stopped helping. The chiropractor did help my hips get into place but not much else. The only thing that has really worked is yoga. I highly recommend it. I do DDP Yoga. It's Diamond Dallas Page. He was the wrestler in the 90's who did a tag team match with Karl Malone against Dennis Rodman and Hulk Hogan. After his career was over his body was in such bad shape he could barely walk. He started doing yoga and it brought his body back. His style of yoga is all about resistance so you're doing strength training with the exercise. I recommend it highly.
When did we stop honking? I don't mean honking just to be a jerk but honking to let someone know their behavior is incorrect. The other day I was behind someone at a red light going straight. We got a green arrow only but the guy in front of me wasn't paying attention and started driving straight. The car on the other side who had a green arrow started turning left and they barely missed each other. No one honked. That car needed to know they did something stupid and dangerous so they could fix the behavior in the future. I'm sure they thought the guy turning left was in the wrong. Once I got the green light I drove and that car turned into their neighborhood. I seriously considered following them. Not to harass them but when they stopped their car to roll down my window and inform them of what they had done and tell them in the nicest terms possible to stop being an idiot. I decided it probably would be construed as harassment or I was risking a punch in the mouth so I didn't. But seriously there is a reason we have horns. Again we don't need to be a jerk but if someone isn't following the law honk at them. They need to know. I had a guy pull out in front of me and I had to slam on my brakes. When I passed him he was oblivious. It does come back to the self-entitlement that is rampant in our culture and all of us do it to some extent. If someone is not following the rules of the road honk at them. You don't need to flip them off but they need to be aware that what they are doing is not correct.
As always thanks for reading. We're doing a contest this week on the podcast. If you share it on your Facebook or Instagram page you'll be entered into a drawing to have lunch with us. Our treat and your choice.
The girls are very excited about Valentine's day. I remember how much fun it was in school too. Unless you got the antacid hearts. There was always a kid that brought them in for everyone. When you have a box of candy that mixes flavors like wintergreen and lemon, you should really rethink you're career path. And if you're the parent who bought those for your kid to take shame on you. Also shame on you if you bought them a Whitman's Sampler. The Whitman's Sampler was forged by the devil himself.
Really though Valentine's candy is not great. Next to the Valentine's candy they had already set up kiosks for Easter candy. That's where it's at. That Cadbury Creme Egg will put you right into a diabetic shock. I eat one a year and I'm good. That should be the next internet challenge to see if you can eat two of those in a day and still be conscious.
Priya gets her cast off next Thursday. On a daily basis she tells me how much she doesn't like her surgery. I don't blame her. I can't wait for the cast to come off just so the tantrums will subside. Right now it's separation anxiety from me. She freaks out anytime I need to leave. It was a 45 minute tantrum on Wednesday because I needed to go record the podcast. (Why yes I have a podcast. You should listen to it. And share it. And comment. It will change your life for the better. Or not. At the very least it will kill 10 minutes.) She didn't want me to go but she didn't want to come with me. She finally calmed down and we had a talk later that night about not ever doing that again. We'll see.
The interesting thing is the different ways the girls have tantrums. Both are extremely stubborn which is good in a lot of ways. With Mirinda though you can reason with her after you get her to calm down. You can't reason with Priya. However 10 minutes later they're both as sweet as can be.
They gave me a huge Valentine card and they had both written sentences on it which is so cool. You get used to reading and writing everything for them and all of the sudden they can do it on their own. It's a weird feeling. I heard someone describe raising children as having a dog who slowly learns to talk, read and write. Somewhat accurate.
If you have back pain you should be doing yoga. Seriously. Mirinda and I do it every night now and I have been amazed at how much less pain I have from sciatica. We do one that focuses on core for 15 minutes and I feel amazing afterwards. Mirinda asks to do it because she loves it so much. I've had sciatica for 3 years in May. Since them I've met with my doctor, done physical therapy, cortisone shots, seen a chiropractor, went to an acupuncturist and did ozone therapy. The cortisone worked but only for 3 months. The ozone therapy did help but after a little while it stopped helping. The chiropractor did help my hips get into place but not much else. The only thing that has really worked is yoga. I highly recommend it. I do DDP Yoga. It's Diamond Dallas Page. He was the wrestler in the 90's who did a tag team match with Karl Malone against Dennis Rodman and Hulk Hogan. After his career was over his body was in such bad shape he could barely walk. He started doing yoga and it brought his body back. His style of yoga is all about resistance so you're doing strength training with the exercise. I recommend it highly.
When did we stop honking? I don't mean honking just to be a jerk but honking to let someone know their behavior is incorrect. The other day I was behind someone at a red light going straight. We got a green arrow only but the guy in front of me wasn't paying attention and started driving straight. The car on the other side who had a green arrow started turning left and they barely missed each other. No one honked. That car needed to know they did something stupid and dangerous so they could fix the behavior in the future. I'm sure they thought the guy turning left was in the wrong. Once I got the green light I drove and that car turned into their neighborhood. I seriously considered following them. Not to harass them but when they stopped their car to roll down my window and inform them of what they had done and tell them in the nicest terms possible to stop being an idiot. I decided it probably would be construed as harassment or I was risking a punch in the mouth so I didn't. But seriously there is a reason we have horns. Again we don't need to be a jerk but if someone isn't following the law honk at them. They need to know. I had a guy pull out in front of me and I had to slam on my brakes. When I passed him he was oblivious. It does come back to the self-entitlement that is rampant in our culture and all of us do it to some extent. If someone is not following the rules of the road honk at them. You don't need to flip them off but they need to be aware that what they are doing is not correct.
As always thanks for reading. We're doing a contest this week on the podcast. If you share it on your Facebook or Instagram page you'll be entered into a drawing to have lunch with us. Our treat and your choice.
Friday, February 7, 2020
Walking and Yoga is a Winning Combination
Priya is now walking pretty well on her own with no walker. She's frustrated and I don't blame her. Holy crap that girl has thrown some tantrums this week. She doesn't like to not be able to do things on her own and she is more stubborn then Mirinda. That will serve her well in a lot of areas in her life but come on kid. It's all about patience. I often say that is the benefit of being an older parent with young kids. You have a lot more patience then you do when you're in your 20's. The drawback is you have no energy to keep up with these weirdos. Between the two of them they have enough energy to power a mission to Mars.
We started doing a lot of yoga this week. Diamond Dallas Page was a wrestler in the 90's. He's the one who had a tag team match with Karl Malone against Hulk Hogan and Dennis Rodman. After wrestling his body was so messed up he could barely move. He started doing yoga and it brought his body back. He has a yoga program now called DDP Yoga and it is really excellent. The girls love to do it. I really like the exercise and it's really helped with the sciatica. It will be 3 years in May that I've had sciatica and man it sucks. I'm hoping dropping 120 pounds will help as well. Or just cut my leg off. Either way.
It is so fun to see these girls start to understand things. Mirinda is really starting to be able to read and I love to see it. We always knew she would be developmentally behind. She's been in early initiative programs pretty much since she came to the US. Now with the adderall it has really helped her to be able to focus and learn things. I love to see how happy she gets when she does something on her own. The girls want to try out tee-ball this spring. They both have really good arms and I think they'll love playing.
I started strength training this week. My chiropractor has arms as big as tree trunks. The last time I saw him he notice I had been losing weight and asked what I was doing. I told him intermittent fasting and exercise and he asked if I was doing strength training. I told him I was only doing cardio and he spent the next 5 minutes explaining why strength training was important. I started this week and I really agree with him. I feel like I'm getting a better workout in a shorter amount of time.
It's another thing that convinces me that the key to weight loss is small changes over time focused on a health lifestyle. I have always hated weight lifting. Sophomore year of high school I decided I wanted to play football for some reason. The issue is I was absolutely awful at football. Just horrible. I didn't have the killer instinct and I just didn't care. I'd go to weight lifting and think, "Man there are a lot of jerks in here." It's not that anyone who lifts weights is a jerk. It's just in that situation that was the case. I remember someone telling me at practice that their opponent is their enemy on and off the field. I remember at 16 thinking that was incredibly stupid.
Because of that I've never been one who likes to lift weights. This week though I was surprised by how much I am enjoying it. It's already starting to get a little easier each day. If I had started with weight lifting last January I wouldn't have kept it up. I've been focusing on what I could do until it became habit and I love doing it. Then it became my decision to start the next thing so I owned the solution instead of someone telling me I should do this or that. When you own the solution you're motivated to get it done. I am really digging this whole thing.
I'm also really loving how much the girls like doing the exercising. I so much do not want them to go through the same things I have with weight issues. As I've said before no one told me to eat those cheeseburgers or the entire sleeve of cookies. I chose to eat that. I just want to help them make better choices early so they don't get to this point. It's amazing when they tell me we need to exercise.
As always thanks for reading! Thanks for all the support and love for Priya and Mirinda as well!
We started doing a lot of yoga this week. Diamond Dallas Page was a wrestler in the 90's. He's the one who had a tag team match with Karl Malone against Hulk Hogan and Dennis Rodman. After wrestling his body was so messed up he could barely move. He started doing yoga and it brought his body back. He has a yoga program now called DDP Yoga and it is really excellent. The girls love to do it. I really like the exercise and it's really helped with the sciatica. It will be 3 years in May that I've had sciatica and man it sucks. I'm hoping dropping 120 pounds will help as well. Or just cut my leg off. Either way.
It is so fun to see these girls start to understand things. Mirinda is really starting to be able to read and I love to see it. We always knew she would be developmentally behind. She's been in early initiative programs pretty much since she came to the US. Now with the adderall it has really helped her to be able to focus and learn things. I love to see how happy she gets when she does something on her own. The girls want to try out tee-ball this spring. They both have really good arms and I think they'll love playing.
I started strength training this week. My chiropractor has arms as big as tree trunks. The last time I saw him he notice I had been losing weight and asked what I was doing. I told him intermittent fasting and exercise and he asked if I was doing strength training. I told him I was only doing cardio and he spent the next 5 minutes explaining why strength training was important. I started this week and I really agree with him. I feel like I'm getting a better workout in a shorter amount of time.
It's another thing that convinces me that the key to weight loss is small changes over time focused on a health lifestyle. I have always hated weight lifting. Sophomore year of high school I decided I wanted to play football for some reason. The issue is I was absolutely awful at football. Just horrible. I didn't have the killer instinct and I just didn't care. I'd go to weight lifting and think, "Man there are a lot of jerks in here." It's not that anyone who lifts weights is a jerk. It's just in that situation that was the case. I remember someone telling me at practice that their opponent is their enemy on and off the field. I remember at 16 thinking that was incredibly stupid.
Because of that I've never been one who likes to lift weights. This week though I was surprised by how much I am enjoying it. It's already starting to get a little easier each day. If I had started with weight lifting last January I wouldn't have kept it up. I've been focusing on what I could do until it became habit and I love doing it. Then it became my decision to start the next thing so I owned the solution instead of someone telling me I should do this or that. When you own the solution you're motivated to get it done. I am really digging this whole thing.
I'm also really loving how much the girls like doing the exercising. I so much do not want them to go through the same things I have with weight issues. As I've said before no one told me to eat those cheeseburgers or the entire sleeve of cookies. I chose to eat that. I just want to help them make better choices early so they don't get to this point. It's amazing when they tell me we need to exercise.
As always thanks for reading! Thanks for all the support and love for Priya and Mirinda as well!
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