An Ode to My Daughter on Her Ninth Birthday

Today my daughter turned nine. This is wild to me. Kids grow up too fast. I know it's a cliche, but time does truly fly by when you have kids. I feel like she was born yesterday. Oh boy.

In reality, she is a fierce, strong, loyal, stubborn and beautiful 3rd grader. She loves to read, enjoys Disney movies, likes "The Simpsons" and is a very creative and inventive writer. She could easily take over my blog today if she wanted. She is very smart, very friendly and smiles way more often than she frowns. She likes jokes, both hearing and telling them. She is very into science projects and she can sit down and write and draw a cartoon in a day if she wanted to. She is the best.

The whole world changed for me when we had a daughter. I grew up with three older brothers. I am my father's child. We do a ton together, be it movies, music or sports, my dad and I hang out a bunch. My wife is pretty girly, but she also likes what she likes and does what she does. She isn't into makeup or dressing up or any of that unless the situation calls for it. She rules. We had a son first, and he is all about sports, music and video games. He does the stuff I did when I was younger. He loves football, basketball and Fortnite. He is a typical 7th grader. Our daughter, she is into a bunch of stuff that I never really thought about until she was born. She loves getting her hair done. For her birthday today, she went and got a trim, glitter put in her hair and two braids. It looks dynamite by the way. She is really into Disney princesses like I mentioned above. When I was younger I was all about "Lion King" and "Aladdin". She loves "The Little Mermaid", "Princess and the Frog" and "Moana" just to name a few. I never sought these movies out, nor were they an option that came up until our daughter was born. She is in her short shorts and big t-shirt era right now. I guess this is what most young kids like to dress like now. But, she had a big dress phase when she was younger. She would not leave the house unless she was in a dress. I found myself shopping for dresses for her when she was younger. I never did that before. She likes to hold hands and give hugs. We showed love in our house growing up, but it was never physically shown. It was an understood thing in the house. My daughter wants to hold hands when I take her to bed or give me a smooch when she's in a good mood or she will give me long hugs after I pick her up from school. And she is very much into how soft her stuffies are and has a bed filled with stuffed animals, some of which she has done their makeup on. Makeup is another thing that I never, ever thought about nine years ago. All of this is awesome and I love that I now know about all this stuff. She has opened my eyes to things that were never on my radar. I'm all in on the Disney princess stuff. Now I give her my race shirts to wear because they're oversized. I know more about Taylor Swift than I thought possible. I let her paint my nails all the time. I love the affection that she brings and has brought out of the rest of us. My kids both bring different things to the table and I am forever grateful that they're in my life.

Happy birthday baby girl. I love you and I am so excited to see the person you grow up to be. Just slow down with all that growing up so fast. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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A Message for a Happy Birthday

My son turns 12 today. I am finding this very hard to believe. I feel like he is still a little kid, a toddler. He very much is not a toddler.

Raising a pre teen can be both rewarding and frustrating. Things are no different in my world. I adore my son. He is my buddy. He is getting into sports more and more everyday. He loves football. He is a basketball fan. He enjoys playing baseball and has started to watch it from time to time. He is becoming, against my better wishes, a Michigan football fan. I know that life and I am trying to steer him towards other teams, which is kind of working. But hey, no better time to be a Michigan Wolverines football fan. I coach him in basketball, and while his listening skills still need to be better, he does things at practice lately where I see he is figuring stuff out on the court. I'm an assistant baseball coach, and his fear of the ball when hitting is all but gone. He may swing at too many pitches if I'm being honest. He is a super bright kid who may not push himself enough in school. He is inherently smart, but he doesn't apply himself all the time. He wants to get his work done so he can goof around with his buddies. I get it, but he is too smart to not push a little more in school. We have given him incentives to work hard, not a great parenting moment, but what are you going to do, and it seems to be working. I thought I caught him watching YouTube on his chromebook the other day, but he was studying. It was a wonderful surprise. And he got every question right on that quiz except for one. Studying did the trick. As much as I love him, we do argue. I feel like this is pretty commonplace for a dad and pre teen son. And our arguments are never over the top crazy. He doesn't want to make his bed or clean his room. I often have to remind him multiple times to do his homework. He pees all over the toilet seat. He doesn't really clean up after himself when he makes a mess. I think he plays too many videogames and doesn't work enough, for my taste, on his athletics. And we bicker like a married couple. But this is all very small in the big picture of things. I have to imagine a bunch of other parents my age with kids my son's age deal with the same stuff. And if that is all I have to gripe about when it comes to my son, I think that is okay. I'm not mad at that at all. I do give him a hard time, probably too hard at times, but it is all coming from a place of love.

I love this kid with every single inch of my heart. He is my first kid. He is who made me a dad. It is due to him that I am a stay at home dad, which is the greatest job a person could ever have. I lost weight and became a runner to keep up with him when I first started staying home with him. He was my introduction to my best bud. Without us being at home dads, we may have never met. That is all due to my son being the social kid that he is. I love watching him play football. He is becoming a better player every year, and the fact that I don't have to coach makes watching so much more rewarding. As I said up top, the kid is figuring things out on the basketball court and has no fear when batting in baseball. He takes multiple challenge courses, and he scores A's and B's. He has worked harder lately. He is a funny and fun kid to be around. He makes me want to be social. He pushes me to get out of my comfort zone in social situations. He is so good at chatting people up, and I envy that quality of my son. My son is the best kid there is on this planet. He may drive me nuts, but every time I think of this day, I smile. I'm also grateful and thankful for him. He started this whole parenting thing for me, and I couldn;t be happier.

Happy birthday bud. I love you so much and cannot wait to celebrate with you. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Now I Have an 11 Year old

My son turns 11 today.

I am kind of in shock still.

I feel like he just turned three a few days ago. He is still my baby. He is my first born kid. When my wife went into labor he was the baby that didn't want to come out. He was supposed to be born on the 25th. He stayed in the womb as long as he could though. He was content there. But ever since he was born, 11 years ago today, he has been an absolute delight. We have our squabbles, as all kids and parents do, but Miles is a damn good kid. He doesn't cause trouble. He is never looking to stir it up. He wants everything to be amicable. He wants everyone included and everyone to be friends. He wants nothing but peace. Miles has never been in any real trouble in school. He is not a disturbance. The only thing I get on him at home about is how messy his room is. Again, he is 11.

This is the kid that made me a dad, and eventually a stay at home dad. I was there for his first steps, first words, first time using the bathroom, his first hit in baseball, his first basket in basketball, his first tackle, I have been there and loved every second of it all. He has an endless wealth of knowledge on the things he loves. You want to know a certain basketball player from the 80's, Miles is your guy. He knows players I don't even know. He has recently gotten heavily into football and his knowledge of the sport knows no bounds already. He is already asking me about guys that came and went when I was his age. He loves music of all kinds. He likes the stuff his friends like, but he will listen to Kendrick Lamar and The Black Keys with me happily. He calls it "old people music", but I can tell he likes some of it. Hell, he has admitted as much. He is a video game fiend. He loves them. From NBA 2k to Pokemon to Mario Odyssey and Paper Mario, the kid is a wizard at those games. I am not good at video games, and when I watch him play I am amazed at how good and how smart he is. He picks up those things so fast. He is an excellent student as well. We just had a parent teacher conference and his teacher was singing his praises. He is fast and should take a little more time on his work, but he knows the answers to all kinds of stuff in his many different subjects. He has been smart from day one. As mentioned above, he plays football, basketball and baseball. He is an okay catcher. We have things to work on, but he readily committed to being a catcher when he was young. He devours all things basketball. He wants to learn the game from the inside out. Basketball is tough, but he is coming along. Football was a revelation this past year. He played flag football before, but this year he played tackle football and he was good. Real good. He likes to tackle and block guys. He likes taking them to the ground. He plays with an edge. I didn't know what to expect when he started playing, but I was hyper impressed with his improvements from day one to his team winning the title in their division.

Most of all, the thing that makes Miles Miles, he is totally 100 percent himself. There is nothing phony about him. He is very happy with the person he is becoming and he is proud of it as well. He is uniquely himself. There is no other Miles out there like our Miles. He is truly one of a kind. The best kind.

I love you buddy. You are growing up too fast, but there is nothing I can do about that. The sun shines and sets with you buddy. Keep being you and keep doing your thing big guy. You rule. Love ya. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Today is a Good Day for My Awesome Wife to Turn 40

Yesterday I turned 40. Today my wife is doing the same. I love that our birthdays are a day apart. Hell, even our dog has a birthday on the 15th. Three in a row and it has always worked great.

Anyway, my wife is going through the same thing I did yesterday. She is much better at handling life milestones than me. She doesn't dwell on it too much. She uses so much energy focusing on my birthday that I think she may be a bit too tired to celebrate hers. I do everything I can to make it a special day. Massages, ordering or cooking dinner, keeping the kids out of her hair, anything to make her day as stress free as possible.

That is not the point of my blog today. I have sung my wife's praises multiple times on the site, and today will be no different. My wife is the best. I met her fifteen years ago, almost to the day of her birthday. We had our first date in December of 2007. It was the best night of my life. I tried to be all cool and hip and she saw right through me. I knew from that day on that I could be myself around her. She liked me enough to accept a date, and trying to be a little cooler was not working for me. When I relaxed it was great. We watched "The Office". We had dinner. We talked. It was great. There was an instant ease. I felt as comfortable around her as anyone I had ever met. She was easy to talk to and easy to have fun with. That has continued for the past fifteen years. Each new year of our relationship, my love grows deeper and deeper for her. She is my rock. She is the engine that runs our family. She has given me two kids. She was the one who suggested I become a stay at home dad over eight years ago. She works her butt off to provide for us and she continues to kick ass at her job. She is an attentive mom to our kids. She is at every sports game, gymnastics, soccer game and any other activity our kids have that she can make it to. She is an even more attentive wife. She is always there for me. In good and bad times she is there with a smile, joke or words of affirmation. Our little squabbles and "arguments" end so fast because she has become even more forgiving these past fifteen years. I mean, she pulled out all the stops yesterday. She ordered lunch for us. She came to pick-up. She dealt with bath time with our daughter. She was a great dinner date. It was perfect because she is as close to perfection as it gets. She is one of the smartest people I have ever been around. She is quick to help with homework. She will indulge me when I go off on politics and sports. She has a keen sense of how to deal with my nonsense when I think I am being smart. She also happens to be beautiful. I look at pictures of her and am amazed that she was willing to marry me. I am a beast and she is a true beauty. Every year she gets more and more beautiful.

My wife is the absolute best. I want to sing her praises from the hills. I don't have many hills nearby, but I do have a blog and I can do that here. These past fifteen years have been a dream come true for me. I am a better person for meeting and marrying my wife. While 40 may have been weird for me, my wife has not shown any signs that it is affecting her at all. She is a rock. She knows how to handle herself. I love you. Happy Birthday. And here's to 40 more birthdays, and then some. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Today is a Good Day to Turn 40

I turned 40 today.

I am not a big birthday person. I never really have been. Birthdays are cool when you're younger. You get to have a party, invite some friends over, go to dinner and get gifts. It is fun. I have a very good memory of a birthday when I was a child. It was 1996. I was turning 14. I had a small group of friends over, we went to Old Country Buffet and then headed back to my house. I wanted to watch the Heisman ceremony that night. Charles Woodson won it. It was great. Then my friends and I watched Michigan basketball beat number 1 Duke. I was ecstatic. I had a blast playing video games and hanging out with my friends after all the good sports news. But that was 14. Birthdays since then have been fine, but nothing too wild. When I turned 18 it was a small gathering and a dinner. 21 brought a snowstorm to Saint Louis. My brothers were all in town so that was cool. But I do not drink and the taste of beer that night turned me off forever. I got my wisdom teeth out right before 25 because I was going to be taken off my folks insurance. I started dating my wife shortly after that and she feels similarly to birthdays as I do. But she also likes to celebrate mine for me. We have done some fun birthday stuff. We went to Memphis when we turned 30. We did that again this past weekend as an early birthday present to both of us. I have gone to a few Grizzlies games on or near my bday. I usually go to dinner with my folks, which I will be doing tonight. At the start of the pandemic my wife did an excellent job of celebrating our birthdays and making it as normal as possible. But this one just has a different feel.

40 is a milestone. It has been a long time. 40 was when I would see all those "over the hill" cards when I was a kid. It feels like getting over a hump. I am already all creaky from running when I wake up, but I felt a little more creaky this morning. My oldest brother texted me and said that I am officially old now. It was in jest and I laughed, but he is also right. Other people I know who have just hit 40 this year warned me about it. I also did not want to leave my 30's. My 30's were great. My wife was actually talking about this this morning. Our son was 1 month away from turning 1 when we turned 30. My wife and I have celebrated our fifth and tenth anniversary, both in Mexico, in our 30's. My daughter was born right before we turned 33. I ran my first marathon at 38. Michigan has been a solid football team, save for 2020, all in my 30's. The Grizzlies are on the come up. Science has been crazy advanced in the last decade. I have found out who my true friends are this past decade. I have grown up emotionally and maturely. I don't do the nonsense that I used to anymore. I have purchased my most recent car on my own. I've made new friends in my 30's. I've done a lot in the past 10 years. I don't feel fully ready to enter a new decade. But I don't have a choice. This is life. We get older everyday. I have, and will, accept it. But it has a weird feel to it. I am just waiting for the shoe to drop and the pains and aches to become commonplace. But I am also optimistic, at least a little. Running will not stop. I see people much older than me still running. My kids are still young enough and we have plenty of time. My folks are still around, as are my brothers and sisters in law. My nieces and nephews are doing cool shit everyday that I get to be involved with. I am back to going to concerts and live comedy shows. I feel better about my anxiety and OCD. 40 is different. 40 is older. But 40 is also great. The older you get the more I appreciate things. This is a bad and good thing.

I just wanted to vent this afternoon. Thanks for listening. And here's to 40. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

An Amazing Nine Years With My Son

Today is an ode to my son. He turned 9 at midnight, and I am still a little in shock by that. I feel like he was just a baby a year or so ago. I remember bringing him home from the hospital, and how scared and unsure and happy I was. I drove my old car at about 40 miles an hour on the highway because I had this tiny human who I helped to create in the back seat. I had this life that me and my wife are now responsible for forever. He is now almost a tween, and it blows my mind.

My son has also changed so much in his short life so far. As a baby he was easy. He was a sound sleeper, a great eater and didn't really cause too much trouble. He would only get upset if he needed a diaper change or if he was hungry. It was pretty simple looking back on it now. When he was a toddler it was more of the same. I got him potty trained without much of a struggle. I started to stay home with him very early on in his toddler days. We made new friends together and we figured all this new stuff out as a dynamic duo. I am still friends with a few other stay at home dads I met during this time as well. And Miles is still friends with their kids. Then as he got to be 5 and 6, he started to get interested in sports, mainly baseball. He is naturally gifted, he seems to have fun playing the game and he still plays to this day. This was when I started to assistant coach so I could watch, and help him grow as a baseball player. He also decided to play basketball. He is good at this too, although we are still working on getting all the rules down. Then he started elementary school, and the person he has become these past three years seems to be who he will be for a good long time now.

He still loves baseball and basketball, but this kid is a gamer. He loves Breath of the Wild and Mario Kart. He will play other Zelda offshoot games. He likes to dip in and out of Smash Bros. He plays the Sonic Olympic game that came out last year. But his choice over all of these, the one game he wants to play, and is really good at, is Fortnite. This kid is a Fortnite monster. He plays it daily, he plays it as soon as he is done with his snack when he gets home from school, and he will spend a good amount of his weekend mornings playing online with his buddies. He adores this game. He talks about it all the time. He brings it up so much that I have to tell him from time to time, no more Fortnite talk for the day. I used to have to tell him to stop talking about other things, but now it is singularly Fortnite. But I love that he is so passionate about this game that he loves. When I was his age, it was all baseball all the time, so I get the passion. I understand it. I don't get the game, I have never played it, but I understand his love for it. I was the same way, just with a different thing.

Outside Fortnite though, Miles is about as easy, and good, as a kid can be. He is a very good student. He is a very lovable and helpful son and grandson and cousin and friend. He is goofy and funny. He likes to horse around. He likes to talk. He has passion. He is becoming a real person, not that he wasn't as a kid, but he is finding his niche in life. I have loved watching him grow up, and will continue to love it as he gets older and older. The way he is handling this pandemic is amazing. He is really taking it in stride. I know I sound like a doting parent, but I am, and when my kid is this easy to love, it is awesome.

Happy birthday Miles Man. I love you and I am excited to celebrate year 9 with you tonight.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

It has Been a Great Six Years for Ty and his Son

Six years ago on this day my life changed forever. My wife gave birth to our son, and my life got instantly better. Today, he turns 6, and I am in shock that 6 years of his life have already come. I mean, so much has changed since he was born.

When my son was born, I was way in over my head. I had no idea what I was doing, like most first time parents. I had never, ever been that tired before. I also, besides my wife, never have loved someone with the entirety of my heart and soul. Miles completed our family at the time. He was the easiest baby that I have ever been around. Now, to that point, the only babies I was around were my nieces and my nephew. They were also easy kids, but Miles was easier. He rarely cried, unless he didn't have a bottle. He was on the smaller end when he was born, 7 pounds 6 ounces, but from the day we brought him home to now, that boy loves his food. Besides the food, he was pretty easy in every other aspect of his infancy. He slept through the night at 3 months. He crawled early. He walked before he was one. The only real scare we had was his minor surgery, and that went off without a hitch. It was so clean and well done, we got home that night, and that was when he took his first steps. From there on out, he remains a great kid, and super easy to take care of.

When he was still a baby I was still a 40 hour a week worker. I went to my job everyday while my wife was on maternity leave. This was very tough for me. I wanted to be around my baby everyday. Then, after 12 weeks, my wife went back to work, and we were both a mess. I had to take him to daycare everyday, and it was tough everyday. We had talked about me staying home with Miles before he was born, and at the time he was in daycare, the talks became longer, more frequent and more realistic. When my wife and I sat down and did our books, I was making no money. Everything I made went to daycare, diapers and formula. It just didn't make sense. That night my wife said I should quit to stay home with him and the very next day I put in my two weeks. While I loved the job I had, it was mainly the people I worked with that made me want to go to work everyday, this was the best decision I have ever made in my life. I found my calling. I started to stay home with Miles a little bit before he was 1 and a half.

This was when things truly started to change. I started to wake up with my son everyday and do everything with him. We ate breakfast and lunch together everyday. We worked on talking, walking, running, everything together. I was able to see milestones first hand. I was there for all of his firsts. It is truly amazing to watch your child grow. I will always have that. Then, we started to venture out and do things outdoors more often. We'd go to the zoo, the Science Center, the Magic House, the library and every free thing we could find in Saint Louis. It was awesome, but it also could be lonely at times. Talking to a 1 and a half year old all day can get frustrating.

It was through another dad I knew that I found out about a group of at home dads that get together once a week. I checked it out on Facebook and immediately became a member. Through this group not only was I able to teach my son to socialize with kids his age, but I was also able to talk to dads that were living the exact same life as me. This group was my saving grace. I now have great friends from this group. It is an amazing thing to be a part of.

As Miles kept having birthdays more and more things changed. When he was 2 he started to speak full sentences, and he hasn't stopped since then. Two years old was also when he became interested in sports, trains and super heroes. It was a fun, exhausting and all a blur. Then he turned 3. He was finally able to start playing tee ball and this meant more socializing and a chance for me to coach him. We loved the program he played in, and as you all know now, I am an employee of the wonderful i9 sports.

This was also the same age that my wife and I decided that we wanted Miles to have a brother or sister. He was on board with this idea too, but I don't think he truly cared either way, that is until he found out it was going to be a sister. He said he wanted a brother, but we explained that we had no choice. A sister it was going to be. I'll never forget when the nurse doing the ultrasound said it was a girl and Miles said, "but I wanted a brother", and we all laughed. Miles eventually laughed too. He has always been a funny little dude.

Before his sister was born Miles started preschool at 4, and another milestone was hit. This was hard for me. I had been home with him for 2 plus years, and now for 3 hours a day, he was going to be gone. I needed something to do with that time before my daughter was born. This was right around the time I took up hiking and running. All the hiking and running led to me doing 5k's, 10k's, mini triathlons and even a half marathon. I also lost a big amount of weight(100 pounds to be exact, and I have kept it right around 60-65 total off). Being home with my son literally changed my life. I became, not fit, but in better shape because of him.

When he was in preschool, his sister was born. He was hesitant at first, but what 3, almost 4 year old wouldn't be. Someone new was honing in on his territory. But, after a rough start, he became a great help. He started to become more self reliant. He was still an excellent sleeper. He started to want to help with everything, except changing diapers. He was, and still is, a great big brother. He protects his sister, but he also plays with her. He truly loves her, and it shows.

At age 4, Miles, along with tee ball, started to play football and basketball through i9. He struggles with football, and I get it, that is a hard sport to learn. But, he is starting to love basketball, but I feel like he has loved it from the start. This makes me very happy on a personal level. I played sports with my dad, now my son is playing them with me. It is awesome.

It didn't just stop at sports for Miles. He loves school. He still loved super heroes. He started to love "Star Wars". He was still into trains. He became a dinosaur nut. He started to want to read more and more books. And, most importantly for me, he was potty trained. All this stuff happened between 3 and 4 years old. It is crazy how much growth happens in such a short span of time. He was also in his second year of preschool, and my wife was on maternity leave with our daughter, and we were both home with her. Those 3 months were amazing, and everyday that Miles got home from preschool, we all got to have lunch together. It was amazing.

My wife then went back to work, and it was me, Miles and our daughter. Again, Miles rocked the house. He was not only killing it at preschool, but again, he was a tremendous help at home. He would hang with his sister so I could shower or make a meal or just get a little break.

Then 5 came, and my baby boy was headed to school. No more preschool for him, he was a full fledged school kid. He goes full day kindergarten, and he is doing an amazing job. He loves it. He is in a gifted program there. He does Read, Write, Run, which is a great program. His teacher loves him. He has a ton of new friends. His transition to full time school has been remarkable. He has also become obsessed with Power Rangers and Legos during his fifth year. He has also gotten pretty good at basketball. He knows karate without taking a class. He plays video games with us. He is a real kid now. He is not a toddler anymore. It is so surreal.

Now that Miles is 6, I am just amazed at how much he has grown, and how the time has flown by, and everything that has changed since he came into our lives. I mean, I became a stay at home dad, my wife continues to climb the company ladder, I got a coaching/instructing/marketing job, we had a second child, we got a dog, we moved into a new house and are now looking for a newer house, I lost over 100 pounds and have kept 60 plus of it off, I have made new lifelong friends, Miles interests have only expanded, my daughter is now walking and talking and about to get potty trained, my parents have retired, I started writing for a website, I'm a podcaster, I got back to regularly playing pickup basketball, Miles continues to grow and learn new things everyday, he asks more and more questions, there are countless number of things that have changed in the past 6 years. It has been awesome, and it is all due to the arrival of Miles.

So, for his sixth birthday I wanted to give you all a little trip down memory lane for myself, but I also wanted to highlight the greatness that is my son. Miles, you rule and I love you so very, very much. You made my life so much better and I am grateful every single day that you are here. I love you buddy and I hope your 6th birthday is amazing. Happy birthday big guy, have a great day!

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. The Head Editor also wants to wish a very happy birthday to our sometime podcast co-host Miles. Have a great day buddy.

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Happy Birthday Memory for a Great Wife

Yesterday was my birthday, as you all know, and I wrote about a specific party that stuck out to me. Today is my wife’s birthday, and I’m going to write about how great she is, but also another joint party that we shared a few years back.

First off, my wife is amazing, and she deserves to be treated as if it’s her birthday everyday. She works hard, she’s the best wife and mom, she is funny and smart and I couldn’t have found a better partner to spend my life with. Our kids may not realize it now, but they got the cream of the crop when it comes to mom’s. She is the most loving and sweet person to our 2 kids. She also disciplines them too. I love that because that means I don’t always have to be the bad guy. She kicks ass at being a Mom. She also crushes at her job. She is the “bread winner” in the family, and I’m so grateful that she is so good at what she does. She is amazing. For these, and many, many more reasons, my wife rules, and everyone should wish her a happy birthday today.

Now, on to the joint party that I spoke of earlier. My wife and I aren’t big party people. We prefer quiet dinners with family and friends for our birthday’s, at least since we’ve gotten older. So, when our 30th birthday came up, we didn’t know what to do. Turning 30 is a big deal. It was the first time I truly felt like a real adult. We had some friends say they wanted to throw us a big party, but we eschewed that pretty quick. Our parents offered to hold a party for us. Again, we didn’t want that either. These were great gestures, but it just isn’t our thing. Also, our son was only 11 months old when we turned 30, so having him out at a party did not sound like fun to us. We were tired and just wanted to relax. And like some god damn superheroes, my folks stepped in and offered to take our son for the weekend and said that we should take a short trip.

We decided that was a great idea, and we chose Memphis. It’s close, the food is spectacular and it’s a fairly inexpensive place to go. There’s also something for everyone to do there. And since our birthday’s landed on the weekend, it was the perfect idea. We took that Friday off, my birthday, and drove up in the morning. We got to the hotel and they upgraded our room for free when we told them it was our birthday. Already off to a great start. The hotel was near downtown too, which was great. We didn’t have to drive anywhere. We got where we needed to go via trolley. It was awesome.

After we checked into our room and relaxed for a bit, we headed out to Rendezvous for the ribs. Those are, by far, the best ribs I’ve ever had. We then walked on Beale Street for a bit, went to my favorite record shop and then grabbed some dessert. After a nice date, we returned to the hotel. I watched basketball while my wife took a bath. It was so perfect. We then slept for about 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Being that we had such a young child, it was the longest either of us slept since he was born. When we woke up, we went and had breakfast at the hotel. While at breakfast I asked my wife what we should do since it was her birthday. She didn’t know yet, so we went back to our room to try and decide. While we laid in bed thinking, we both fell asleep. We were taking full advantage of a big comfy bed and no kid. After our 2 hour nap, plus our 12 hours from the previous night, we got up, got ourselves dressed and did some more sight seeing. We went and watched the ducks at the Peabody Hotel. We got our son some toys and books. We checked out the minor league baseball stadium. We went to a bunch of different shops. It was great. Then for dinner my wife wanted sushi. I razzed her a bit, we were in Memphis after all, but she did make a solid choice. The food was great. We then went back to the hotel and did the same thing as the night before. Again, it was great and super relaxing. We slept for a good 10-12 hours again, had breakfast and headed home. It was an awesome weekend. The best part, besides being alone with my wife, was all the sleep we got. It was stupendous. This is another birthday I will always remember, and I’m pretty sure my wife does too.

Anyway, happy birthday to my wife. You rule and I love you so much.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He definitely married up in this world. Charm does pay off.

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