Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Andrea's turning a year older and my babysitter dilemma



Hey everyone, I hope that you are doing well. I've included a picture of me as a batboy for the Braves which the CF Foundation allowed me to do for one game when I was in grammar school. You can see how skinny I was. That's common for people with CF. I've also included picture of me (with my lovely bride) finishing the Peachtree in 2007. The working out definitely has paid off and I can't say enough about it for parents of kids with CF. Exercise can be a great medication against CF.

I have big plans for Andrea’s birthday which I am not telling her about. She’s probably reading this blog and trying to get clues. No luck honey! I look forward to showing her how much I love her. It's been a trying few years and I want her birthday to be one of her best birthdays ever. Andrea will be a year older on Sunday so please give her a call, send her a text, Facebook her or send her a telegram.

I just finished a video for our website www.andylipman.com. It was cool to work with the best man from my wedding, Ross. He did a great job. I’m sure it will turn out great. Hopefully it will promote awareness for cystic fibrosis. I’m really proud of it. We should have it ready by the middle of August. Thanks Ross and please thank Rodney for me!

I’m proud of my 1st place Braves. Only about 70 games to go. I think the Phils will make one more run at them. I think the Mets are done. I hope we can hang on. I have missed being in a pennant race the last few years. It’s really exciting.

My diet is in week 3. I set a goal of losing 11 pounds in 4 weeks and thus far I’ve lost 8 pounds. I’m eating Lean Cuisines for lunch and occasionally adding small smoothies to the mix from Planet Smoothie. I’m eating smaller portions for dinner and trying to decrease the number of snacks I eat. I’m still keeping the same workout routine while being on my Tobi aerosol. So each day, I work out for about an hour (two hours on Mondays when I have softball) and then I have my treatments for 3 to 4 hours. I’m not playing the Wii like I thought I would. I’m mostly spending time with the kids or catching up on Law and Order SVU and Criminal Intent.

I thought a lot about contacting my babysitter. I talked to my sponsor about it. Yes, I have a sponsor that I meet with once a week. He recommended I wait till we finish our program that should end in a couple of months but he did think that contacting him would be a wise idea in order to get closure. I have therefore decided with his advice and from your advice on the blog to go ahead and contact him and let him know that his past actions affected me and that I will no longer let them burn in me. Not only does my past with him make me afraid of conflict but it makes me afraid of any babysitter I hire to watch my kids. I never hire a guy to do it. That’s the effect that he had on me. He’s made me untrusting in many ways, but I have the control to fix that in myself and I plan to do that.

I have other secrets to reveal about myself and in time I will. Thank you for being patient and for listening. Having a blog is a great outlet but it also is difficult because it’s hard to express the secrets I’ve kept for years about myself. We all fear being judged whether we admit it or not. We fear people thinking negatively of us and therefore treating us differently.

Andrea won her tennis match again this past Sunday. I’m going to have to start calling her Serena. She’s a tremendous player. I can't wait to take her to the Atlanta Tennis Championships on Friday to watch the Quarterfinals. Hopefully we'll get Isner though I don't feel like staying there for 13 hours. Andrea and Staci make a great T-2 doubles team as well. They are defending champions of their division. I took the kids to watch her play USTA on Sunday and I was very impressed. I remember when she was just a beginner.

My softball team won again. We were 17-9 winners. I went 2 for 2 with 3 RBI’s and hit the stuffing out of the ball. It’s the hardest I’ve hit a softball in a long time. I think part of it is because I’ve increased the amount of weight I’ve been lifting lately. I’m also using the bench instead of the machine the last week or so. I’m doing 3 sets of 185 right now, 10 reps each. That used to be easy for me but since I haven’t done the barbell in so long it’s tough to get used to it again. I also believe I’m swinging harder because of the anger in me lately. I’m less shamed of my past issues and more upset at my past coping skills. I don’t know if that’s the antidepressants talking or even my therapists or sponsor or even the program I'm working, but I know that it’s time that I let the past die and make the most of the present.

Andrea and I had fun with Ross and Summer this past weekend. We saw Despicable Me. Great flick, but the company was better.

My new agent and I will begin working next week on selling my book to a publisher. I look forward to the next step in the process.

Ethan had a virus this week but he’s starting to come out of it. Tuesday night was terrible. Andrea and I slept a combined 5 hours. It is so hard to see your kid in poor health. Andrea took him to the doctor yesterday and he is so much better today. I have to thank my friend Kerry who helped us find a great doctor in the Norcross area. Ethan is laughing again and trying to beat up his big sister. Avery, meanwhile, is becoming quite the ping pong player. We now play to 10 and if she hits the ball she gets a point and if she misses, I get the point. I used to win with ease but she beat me 10-5 yesterday. My prize was a big hug and kiss. Her prize was beating big bad Daddy.

T minus a month till Andrea gets to go to the Emmys with Emily. They won the prize at a silent auction. That is so cool. I am so excited for them. I’m hoping they see the cast of Modern Family there. I’d love to see a picture of Ed O’Neill (formerly Al Bundy). I’m a huge fan of the show.

Well, that’s it for now. I hope everyone is well. Manda, thank you for the note. Emily and Jay, thank you for your input. And to my anonymous buddy who is beating his issues, keep fighting! I’m pulling for you.

To anyone battling CF or any other disease, fight the good fight and communicate to your friends and family about how they can help. It makes a difference. Trust me.

Later everyone.

Best Wishes,

Andy

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