“I know lots of people who die in their twenties but aren’t buried until their eighties.”

Sometimes I feel like that person. I feel like I put a hold on who I am or who I wanted to be for this adventure known as parenting. It isn’t true but that doesn’t change the fact that I feel like that sometimes.

The other day I went with Supermom to a department store to do some suit shopping. I am not much of a suit guy although I should be because I look damn good in one. That day was no different. I found pants that wore like silk, a jacket that felt custom made, a shirt that screamed, and a tie that popped. Man what a feeling. Like leaving the dentist office as a kid, I was all smiles.

The next week I wore my new suit and got a compliment. Boom! Smile high again. I really should wear more suits. It will be hard to reconcile with my love of nerdy t-shirts but maybe I can get those t-shirt phrases printed on a snazzy tie. That would be a good combo for me.

It felt good to spend some money on myself. To put in a little more effort than eight year old khaki cargo shorts and light grey New Balance shoes. I love both of those things but, as the young lady at the Bruno Mars concert informed me, I am “a little behind the times”. Not to be threatened by a young twenty-something, I flipped on the most fashionable show I could think of; Keeping Up With The Kardashians. I noticed Bruce has started wearing dresses and goes by Kaitlyn now. I felt a little sad. While I can certainly understand the freedom and comfort of a full length cotton sundress, I just don’t think that style is for me.Plus I would never stop touching my boobs. I may never be considered fashionable. I will stick to my shorts, t-shirts, and (as my wife calls them) my Jesus sandals.

Sidenote: If Jesus wore black knee socks with his sandals it might better explain the outpouring of rage during the crucifixion. I hear that is a major no-no.

Anyway. Suit or not, I think it is important to keep perspective on who we are as people and know that family, marriage, jobs, and life don’t impede our path. All those things are part of our life and our story. They are as unchangeable as the law of gravity or the fact that every single time I see Ted Cruz I also see Grandpa Munster.

My life with Supermom so far has been a blur. One day I looked up and we are no longer living with a house that requires blankets and space heaters to keep warm. Where our neighbors turn tricks on the street corner within earshot of our front porch. We have graduated to a house with a two car garage that we promptly crammed so full of junk we couldn’t use it. We have four beautiful children, grown up cars, and a never relenting pile of dishes and laundry that feel like concrete blocks around my feet whenever I want to cook something or put on pants. Our dog is basically a zombie. Although instead of eating brains she just wanders aimlessly and pisses on random things.

Life is good. We are coming up on the decade mark in our marriage and it doesn’t feel like that long at all. I am amazed at all of the things we have experienced and the memories that we collected. Especially, a few of the times when life felt heavy. Those are the richest memories of all.

I blame my children for our current level of awesomeness. I can say for certain that without them I wouldn’t be where I am today. I definitely wouldn’t be writing. I wouldn’t be as loving and understanding of a person. I also wouldn’t be as fat but if you have to trade something, I guess trading health for happiness is something biology encourages (see also: addiction).

Plus kids are entertaining. The other night we were enjoying dinner and Threeto wanted another piece of corn. All the corn had been eaten but Prima still had her corn-on-the-cob on her plate. I asked her, “Did you not want to eat your corn?” She answered, “No I just suck corn. I’m a cob sucker.” I informed her sister that there was no more corn and I left the room to go pray to all the gods of the universe to try and fix Prima’s inappropriate phrasing. I didn’t feel ready to articulate why “I’m a cob sucker” is not a great phrase to throw around in public so I just left it alone. Maybe she won’t share that again.

If you are feeling philosophical today, this post is for you. You’re welcome. Sorry for the rambling. The quote at the beginning really had me thinking about random tidbits so that is what you got. Hope you enjoyed it. Also, if you have a really cool idea for a 10^th Anniversary present/celebration then share it in the comments or on my Facebook page.

-Underdaddy to the rescue.