Jerry Wayne Odom Jr

Audrey playing Memorial day 2012

Audrey, jumper

That’s not a type0 it seems like 2011 was never actually here and I can’t believe 2012 is already days in.    This had to be one of the quickest years I’ve ever experienced and I know it’s got to be mostly because of our daughter Ella.   She’s so action packed and non-stop fun we can’t imagine how people keep up with more than one.    The last big thing she learned how to do in 2011 was opening door knobs herself which essentially takes the gloves off for 2012.   I had no idea how much different things would be the day she could get out of her room in the morning without our help.

2012 goal number 1 is building our house.   We’ve had our property for 3 years now and I’ve painfully watched my wife and father in law dueling over house plan designs.  I personally settled everything I wanted in the house around a year ago but as we all know the last 10% takes longest and I’m personally never worried about the last 10% of anything.   Hopefully I can press them to finish it and let us get that project done.

Driving from Lake Charles a few back with a coworker who’s about two decades older than me we were discussing kids and cough remedies given the time of year and colds going around and he shared with me the recipe his grandmother used to make back in the day. My how things have changed because I’m pretty sure you’ll get on national news for giving this to your children as a cough remedy. His grandmother would take a bottle of Jack Daniels and dissolve those large hard peppermint sticks in to it and then flavor it to taste with honey and lemon juice. That was what they used for cough syrup and it worked great. It also apparently would knock you out for a few hours which is about what you’d expect the results to be on kids. It actually sounds like a fairly tasty concoction. Certainly more so than say Jagermeister or one of those type of liqours. (yuck.)

We’re getting to be around 16 months now. All kinds of energy!

Beautiful weather this February in Baton Rouge so we’ve hit the parks a lot lately. She’s also learned how to use just about anything as a stool or just stand on tables for no reason.

New website segment I”m trying to do where I post some pics of Ella every month.

Always fun watching children meltdown on Santa.   I guess he’s a little scary looking!   Pretty much knew it was coming because my kid hates beards!

I’ve never been one to worry about dying much. My thoughts have always been that when it happens it happens for everyone. I’m realistic about it to the point that the idea of friends or family passing doesn’t bother me terribly. Anyone who I love enough to care about I feel they’re a good enough person that they’ll go to a better place in death. Some think it’s a cold perspective but people who take time to understand the point of view realize that as one said “Don’t take life too serious, nobody gets out alive anyway.”

Having a Child Changes Everything

Nobody warns you about the worrying that goes along with having a child.    I remember now pondering on the subject how a friend suggested that having a child turns your perspective of the world in to evaluating things as “can kill” or “can’t kill” your kid.    For me that’s definitely true as the longer I have my daughter the more I can’t stand the idea of doing without her.   I worry about everything from the stick she picks up to her and mom driving at night.    It was certainly a surprise to me that I became  a worrier much like we always teased my grandfather about being.

Now worrying about my baby isn’t as much of a surprise as the fact that I started worrying about myself.   I purchased life insurance and disability insurance which are things I never owned before.   I can’t stand the thought of leaving the family without.    What’s more is I feel a tightening in my chest if I even start to drift towards the thought of not being there to see my baby grow up.   One year has produced so many great memories and you just don’t want it to end.  You definitely begin to treasure your own life more for the sake of your little ones.

Having a baby is great and I’ve loved the past year of it but man does it shove responsibility on your shoulders as if you were Atlas.

I’m really thankful to be having a daughter grow up in a time of so many devices to capture moments. I wasn’t there for this moment but her reaction is priceless. She’s a huge Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fan already at 1 year old and I’m pretty sure that will run until she’s old enough to love whoever the Miley Cyrus or Justin Beiber of 2015-2020 is. Great videos and pictures like this were a major catalyst in me updating my blog software so I can share with everyone. I love the comment at around the 2:30 mark where Charlotte says “you’re not spoiled are you”.