King of My Castle

When is the King not necessarily head of his castle? When he resides with a Queen and three Princesses, that's when!

I am so lucky to live with four beautiful girls. I am constantly showered with love in the form of kisses, hugs, crayon hearts on scrap paper, and snuggles on the couch. But I don't kid myself to think that I run this house. My wife is the foundation of this family. She is strong, loving, devoted, structured, and hard when necessary. I am priviledged to be a part of the family that she has built for me and I am amazed every day by her ability as a wife and mother. Together, more her than me I think, we are now raising three beautiful girls, who will, no doubt, become amazing women in their own way.

My love and respect for Angie has grown even more recently as she gave birth to Sophia Grace Dick, a 7lb 7oz ball of pure cuteness. I don't care how many kids you've had, or how tough you think you are, the birth of your child brings emotion that you just don't experience under any other circumstances. And when you actually deliver your own daughter, like I did, it's simply overwhelming. Dr. Berault, Angie's OB, gave me the greatest gift ever, the opportunity to "catch" Sophie. When I tell people about it, I joke that it was a "spectacular reception" and that I even remembered to not spike the "ball" after the catch. But seriously, it was an experience I'll never forget. I was so emotional throughout the whole thing, that I had to concentrate all of my senses on Sophie as she came out. Professional athletes and snipers talk about this total focus of everything you have into one task until it is completed. For about two minutes, this happened to me. During the moments that Sophie was being born, I can only remember the image of her. Then as Dr. B told me to hand off Sophie to Angie, all my surroundings and the realization of what I had just experienced hit me in the chest like being hit with a baseball bat.

I am not ashamed to say that I sobbed uncontrolably for a minute or so. Every man should experience that form of utter release of pent-up emotion. It changes you.

I have posted some pics of the event. I hope they make you as proud as I am.