Daddy

My husband would rather be living in the Canadian wilderness in a log cabin he built by hand. Maybe that’s because his Dad did and that’s where he was born. It’s in his blood, the call of the Wild.

Instead, he spends every day in a little ranch home in southern Delaware (it’s the itty bitty state next to Maryland and south of PA/NJ in case your geography is rusty) as a full-time Daddy raising two little princesses while his wife runs off to work. He might long for adventure and freedom, but his love for his 3 girls is stronger.

Daddy made a snowman for his girls - January 2014

He has sacrificed many personal desires to give our 5 year old daughter with special needs the best opportunities he can and to tame the thrill seeker that is our 2 year old girl.

In the midst of the daily grind of fatherhood, his body unexpectedly fell down one day in late 2009. Over the course of the next two weeks, he experienced three grand mal seizures that sent him to the ER twice. The seizures brought with them pain and blood and took from him memories, comprehension and the ability to drive. For more than three years, the seizures toyed with him…disappearing long enough to give hope, only to violently reappear when least expected. They changed him. They changed us all.

Today, we are experiencing renewed hope as the seizures have been silent for more than a year. Adrian still takes daily meds and feels the mental toll of the epilepsy, but he is slowly gaining back some of what was lost. As a way to mark this milestone and forever brand his inspiration to keep on (his faith and his girls), he recently got his first tattoo.

Adrian’s Life:

He has lived a full life as the third of eight children, and helping raise several younger siblings gave him training with babies and children that many men just don’t have.

Adrian pictured in the center of the top
row with his family in the early years
(there were still 2 girls to come!)

His job history is broad and includes commercial sales, plumbing, logging, construction management, farming, truck driving, and even waiting tables and bartending.

A few years behind the wheel of a semi doing cross country transport gave him the opportunity to see the entire United States. He’s now been to every state in the country except Hawaii (we’ll have to work on that!) and just this year, he flew across the Atlantic for the first time to experience Europe.

He is often misunderstood with his serious countenance and “realist” view on life, but at heart he is sensitive and romantic. His deep blue eyes are penetrating and his broad shoulders give him that ruggedly handsome, athletic build.

Before the seizures, he was a gifted speaker who shared at church, led a growing youth group, and performed numerous weddings. Time will tell if that gift is to resurface.

For now, he finds hobbies to balance his daily tasks of laundry, diaper-changing, mowing lawn and toilet scrubbing. Being a Stay at Home Dad is no easy task. He escapes by playing Disc Golf (a rapidly growing sport) at local state parks and in area tournaments plus he’s recently taken up piano playing. The girls love to sit with him and sing songs from Frozen while he practices. He is truly a fantastic father for our girls, as this post clearly shows.

In many ways, his life is richly blessed but he has endured much pain and loss. He takes each day as it comes, having no idea for what the future holds but knowing that if he can accomplish just one thing in this day, he is succeeding. Even if that one thing is just another load of laundry.

Adrian pondering past, present and future as he stares across the Atlantic from the shores of Spain.