A Very Busy 2 Weeks

There's been a lot going on in the last couple of weeks. We went as a family and saw dad, staying overnight at a hotel in Milwaukee. It was a good visit, with dad getting to see all of the kids, and the kids and Mike getting to see him again for the first time in several years. We had an outrageously priced dinner, and got to relax and hang out for a while. That was also the weekend of our anniversary.
Then last weekend, we had our anniversary party, and dad and Colleen came down for it. There were about a dozen or so people, all family, there at the party. Dad and Colleen got to see Jaime and meet her kids for the first time, and see the rest of the family. The trip back up to drop them off was interesting, we had a bit of snow and freezing rain to navigate through. I only went like 40-45 all the way up and back on the highway. Got to meet both of Colleen's sons when I dropped them off.
Gabe has now mastered all but 4 letters, and knows with total certainty all numbers to 10, and is learning 11-20 now!!!! He also is wearing underwear more reliably during the day, and we have noticed can stay dry upwards of 8 hours at a time (when he pays attention!). He's had 3 days in the last 2 weeks where he has NOT come into our bed during the late night/early morning hours! Lots of good news there, and things are going well as far as school and sleeping and potty training.

All in all it's been a very long 2 weeks, and feels more like 2 months. Hoping to keep caught up on here in the future. I'd like to, at minimum, start posting once a week or more. Ideally, I'd like to post every day or every other day. We'll see though how it goes. Teaching Gabe is hard work, and keeps me busy!

My visit with my dad went well, just needed some time to digest it all and figure out what and how to write. I learned quite a few things that I didn't know before. Like, for starters, my dad is Catholic, which I did not know, nor did mom. You'd think that kind of thing would come up when you're thinking of getting married, but not with those two.
My grandma (dad's mom) passed away about 2 yrs ago, dementia and a heart attack. Dad's longtime girlfriend that I first met when I got back in contact with him 11yrs ago passed away about 3 yrs ago, cancer and brain tumors.
It was a weird meeting, seeing him again was almost like never having lost contact. He's still the same guy I missed growing up, but different at the same time. He's been fighting for disability since 2004, and has another appointment this Friday on Gabe's birthday. His new wife, Colleen, has 2 sons, 16 and 17. They live with her and dad. They have a cat, named Booger.
When he came out the door, my heart was racing. I was thinking what if he doesn't like the kids, what if we don't get along, if this meeting didn't go well. What if he didn't want to see us again after this meeting, what if I got the kids' and my hopes up for nothing, and he's going to drop out of our lives again.
But it went well. We talked, shared and had lunch together. We wandered through the mall for a bit, catching up on what all had gone on in the past 5-6 years, who was born, who died, who moved. We even made plans for me and the kids and maybe even Mike to come back up around the first of the month. And this time maybe I'll remember the photo album.

My Dad

My dad and I haven't been in contact for at least the last 5 yrs. Right about the time my youngest nephew was born was the last time I saw him. So imagine my surprise when I answered the phone yesterday to hear his voice. I didn't know who it was that first few seconds, and then something clicked and I just knew who it was. He asked if I was curious to know how he found me again, and I said No, not really, because I'd done the same thing 11 yrs ago to find him. I went online and used one of the people search websites. He cheated and did it the easy way, white pages on Yahoo. Punk. Anyway, mom and dad divorced when I was 7 I think. Then, we only saw him once in a great while, until we moved from Milwaukee in 1988. And never saw him again until February 1998. Ten years is a long time, a lifetime even. In that ten years, I had grown up, graduated, dated, married and had a child. All those things that he missed.
My kids know of him, and have seen him a handful of times, the last time being 5 yrs ago. Since then, Mike's changed jobs, I've quit mine, Gabe was diagnosed. My grandmother died, Mike's grandfather died, Aunt Rose died. So many things that he will never experience with us. So many things that I've missed with my dad.
So this weekend, I'm going to see him. For the first time again, in 5 yrs. And his new wife, who he married last week on his 53rd birthday.
Wish me luck and strength when I see him.