When I was 11, my teenage cousin Tammy and I had a memorable conversation about the number of kids that we each planned to have. Tammy and I didn’t have a clue about parenthood then so at the time it sounded cool for us to say that we would do a competition to see which one of us would be the first to have 50 kids in all 50 states.
Thirty years later my cousin and I have three kids apiece but now that’s about to change because I recently learned – on my birthday, no less – that PapiBlogger is about to be a dad for a fourth time!
When my wife told me the news I instantly remembered the crazy old bet I made with my cousin. Here’s what else instantly streamed into my head:
– YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME?!!! In fact, my wife initially planned to play a joke on me that she was pregnant. Then she saw the pregnancy test and the joke was on both of us, two 40-something year olds who didn’t think they would have more kids again. (If we live long enough we’ll both be old grandparents).
– This means we’re headed back to the parenting joys of diapers, compotas and sleepless nights!
– Maybe there’s a sponsorship opportunity in this pregnancy somehow. Hey, if we’ve been able to get two consecutive, 40-plus day summer family road trips sponsored by major brands that love our blogging work, why not try to get one for our pregnancy and baby adventures? I’ll be blogging, Facebook and tweeting about our pregnancy and the baby from this point forward. (Yo, Pampers, can we talk?)
We won't be doing an epic summer family road trip this year like we did in 2011 with Disney and Buick but expect something fun and different from us in 2012!
– It’s time to get a new PapiMobile! My wife has been lobbying me for a new family vehicle for four years so now she’ll get her wish. I’m a miser when it comes to buying cars but we need a bigger one that will last us a long time. The current front runner to be the official family car? The Buick Enclave. We had a terrific experience with the Enclave during our 10,000 PapiBlogger family road trip to Alaska and it also has a lot of nostalgia points with the kids. (We’ll keep you posted on this).
The 2012 Buick Enclave is the early front runner to be the official family vehicle of the growing PapiBlogger clan. Here's the Enclave we drove this summer on our road trip in front of Crater Lake, Oregon.
– This is clearly a sign that one of my kids must be destined to be President of the United States. God willing, all four of my children will be official Election Year Babies: 2000, 2004, 2008 and now 2012. (In case you’re wondering, yes, for better and for worse, my presidential choice has won each of those elections).
– God help me be a great dad to four kids. Believe it or not, this is the number one thing that I think about the most. I know it’s possible to be a good father to four kids but I sincerely don’t know how the great dads of old did it with 12-children family homes. I am sincerely depending even more on God to help me be the dad that Baby No. 4 deserves.
– There go our plans for this summer’s Hawaiian vacations! This summer the PapiBlogger clan had scheduled a big family adventure for Hawaii but that’s now close to impossible because our baby is due right smack in the middle of the summer. (We’ll try to do SOMETHING to make up for this but Hawaii seems totally out of the question).
4Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.
5How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;
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