Baby Jason Has Arrived!

With everything going on, I had neglected to make a post here about the arrival of my son...

On February 20th, my wife gave birth to a beautiful, baby boy named Jason Fitzpatrick. He was 9 lbs, 4 oz and measured in at almost 21 inches. It has been six years since we last had an infant in the house, but it is a joy to watch a new, little life again. Just as we continue to do with Katrina, I'm excited to watch this little lad grow.











That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

My Little Sweetheart Turns Four

I just realized in beginning this post, that it has been a couple of weeks or so since I last wrote something down here. The past two weeks have been crazy to say the least, but I'm finally adjusted (I think) to my new schedule and I should hopefully start posting again somewhat regularly. This is not what I'm here to post about though this evening. Tomorrow, my daughter Katrina turns 4 years old. Four! Has four years really come and gone that quickly? Family and friends with kids of their own always told me just how fast time flies when you're raising a child, but I never could have imagined it would have gone this fast. I can remember when she couldn't even talk, let along opine for hours on any subject like she does now. I remember how small she was. Indeed it seemed as though my thumb was as big as her whole hand when she was born. It all just seems like it was yesterday...

No matter how many years separate me from the event, I will never forget it. My good friend Jason and I were heading out for a cigarette break at work (I'm so glad I've since kicked that habit) when the phone in my office rang. Normally I would have just let my voicemail pick it up, but since I was only halfway down the hall I decided to pick it up. Much to my surprise, it was Kristin sounding a bit excited.

"I think my water broke", she said.
"You think, or you know?" I replied.

Mind you that this was the 21st of February and Katrina was not due until the end of March. After confirming with Kristin that her water had indeed broken, I let my boss know I was leaving and rushed out of work in a hysterical fit. Now let me say that once I got Kristin in my truck I drove us very calmly to her doctor's office. The drive from work to pick her up however, was an entirely different matter. I was half tempted to throw my lights and siren on while I sped home (at well above the posted speed limit), but thankfully for me there wasn't a lot traffic to tempt me into getting myself into trouble. Needless to say, the doctor confirmed that Kristin's water had broke and the Katrina would be with us soon. I drove Kristin over to the hospital where we would wait most of the day for our little one's arrival. After roughly 12 hours, Katrina began her final descent into this world. After only about 45 minutes, Katrina just made it into Friday, February 22nd at a few minutes past midnight and changed my world forever.

2008 was a fairly rough year for me. In the span of two weeks around the end of February/beginning of March I lost my father and then we had to move after the house we were renting (and trying to buy) was foreclosed upon. I was at a fairly low point and wasn't quite sure how I would hold it together. In spite of all this chaos, here was this little angel from heaven. This completely helpless bundle of beautiful. She needed me to hold it together. Her mommy needed me to hold it together. I said it back then and I stick to my feelings now that it was Katrina that helped keep me from completely losing it. With all that was going on, I had to stay focused for her.

In the years since, I've always enjoyed watching with quiet amazement as she grows and learns new things. It is amazing to watch the transformation from a small baby who could only cry to a girl who can articulate so well. One thing that has remained constant though is the constant inquisitive manner with which she approaches any situation. She's constantly observing what is going on around her and soaking it all in. I remember how much I missed her when I went on my year-long deployment to the desert. Her hug when I got off that plane for the last time was worth more to me than any gift or item in the world.

I'm so proud to be your Daddy, Katrina. I love you more than I could ever tell you (although I will certainly try). Happy Birthday sweetheart! Daddy loves you.

My Little Railfan Buddy

I got off from work fairly early today, so I decided that it was time for a much needed visit trackside with my daughter, Katrina. She loves trains and I've been wanting to take her for awhile, but life has been crazy for the past month or so. I'm glad we made it out today though. We both had a blast hanging out at the Odenton MARC station and snuggling to mitigate the effects of the wind. She was thrilled every time a train would pass and I loved watching her face as they did. She was particularly fascinated by the Acela train sets that would zip through the station at over 100 mph. When we weren't watching trains go by, we would pass the time singing silly songs and imagining where all the other people at the station might be coming from and going to. It did my soul good to spend that time with her and I'm looking forward to the next time we get a chance to.

Last Saturday Recap

'Tis a slow one for news this week. I'm mainly doing things around the house this weekend while my ladies are visiting some friends in South Carolina. With that in mind I thought I'd take a little bit of time to do a photo recap of last Saturday's activities. First up is the photos from our visit to Hill High Farm near Winchester, VA...

I love this first shot because the elements in it are sure signs that fall has arrived.


A few tractor shots.








Katrina and Grandpa making their way through a maze of hay bales.


My little smiling sweetheart during the hayride.


While stopped to pick pumpkins. She's already cute enough, but holding up that little pumpkin makes her look even cuter.


One of two calves at the animal petting barn.


Later that evening we had a small campfire get together at my in-laws' church.


That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

New Family Addition

We decided last week that the time was right for us to get a dog. I've wanted one every since I left home for the Air Force, but with being single and moving around a lot it just wasn't an option. Even after getting married, it wouldn't have been fair to the dog with both Kristin and I working. To add to everything else, we didn't want to run the risk of renting a place that wouldn't allow a dog. We had resigned ourselves to the fact that we had to wait until we purchased our own home within the next couple of years. On a whim though, I had decided to e-mail my landlord last week and see what he might say about adding the dog. I offered to pay an extra pet deposit if he said yes. Not only did he say yes to us having a dog in the house, but he stated that he was not going to charge us an extra pet deposit.

With the opportunity now right, we decided to pay a visit to the Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter (BARCS) to look for a pitty mix. At this point, I should backtrack a little. I've always loved all types of dogs. Growing up, we mainly had mutts we adopted from shelters or the occasional stray who just showed up. This past year though, I fell in love with Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes after my mom adopted one from a rescue.

My mom's dog Shiloh.

At BARCS, we waited for almost an hour before we could even look at dogs because they were severely short-staffed on volunteers that day. Soon enough though we were back browsing through all the animals. There were many animals that we would have loved to take home with us, but we narrowed them down to three we wanted to take for a walk. Of the three, one in particular stood out. This dog was Juicy. Not only was Juicy nice and calm when we first walked up to her kennel, but when we allowed Katrina to give her a treat, she sat there and gently took it. No snapping, no lunging forward. After getting lots of gentle doggy kisses from her and seeing how she just wanted to be close to a person, we decided that she was the dog for us. In short time she was ours and going by her new name, Layla. Now for those wondering, yes, I named her after the Derek and the Dominoes song. All I can say is that Layla is a sweetheart. She still has a little puppy left in her (the cats are having a hard time adjusting because of that), but when she's not active, she's the biggest snuggler in the world. She loves to lay on the couch or in bed with Kristin and I and is generally shadowing one or the other. All I can say is that I am so grateful we found her. She is such a welcome addition to the family.

Here are a few photos I took of Layla the other day.








That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

My Daughter, My Life

You don't realize what you've got until it's gone.

We've all heard that saying many times before, but until we come face to face with a situation like it, we don't quite realize how it will impact us.  I'm facing that situation now being deployed far away from my daughter Katrina for the first time since she was born in 2008.  As she gets ready to turn 2 years old at the end of February, I can't help but reflect back on my life with her so far.

I consider myself to be a pretty involved Dad overall.  I absolutely love Katrina and love to spend time and do things with her.  I've never ignored her or left her to fend for herself.  That being said, I keep asking myself, "Have I always treated her as the biggest part of my life that she is?"  Thinking back, I realize that many times I've been just above the bare minimum when it comes to my responsibilities as a Dad.  Looking back over the last two years I realize I've been very selfish with my time.  All too often I forgot that with a child, it really is no longer my time.

Now this is not to say that wanting to do something for myself was wrong.  As human beings, we all still have wants and needs.  Even when a child enters the picture, parents still have the need to do things on their own.  There is nothing wrong with that and it is quite normal.  The problem I have discovered though is that I was too often putting my wants and needs over Katrina's and because of that , I've missed out on a lot of opportunities to spend time and bond with my daughter.  Being deployed now and so far away from her, there is nothing I wouldn't do to just be there spending time with her right now.  Unfortunately, in order to make life better for her and my wife Kristin, I cannot do that for awhile.

So what do I do then?  I cannot get back the time that has already passed.  I also cannot wallow in pity and regret as that doesn't do anyone any good.  For the time being, I will be as involved as I possibly can while being so far away.  My weekly webcam chats with Katrina and Kristin certainly help and I think they are good for the both of us.  Going forward I have also pledged to my wife (and myself) that things will be different when I return home in November.  Not having her near me has brought back into the forefront of my mind just how important she is to me.

After all, since she was born her life became mine.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Dedicated to my Katrina.  Daddy loves you!