Tag: denver

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Kindness equals Love

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This morning my beautiful boys and I will be going to our local Food Bank and helping pack boxes with donated food for others to take home. I’m very happy we get to work as a team with other volunteers. I’m very sad this is even necessary. I want my boys to meet the Director so she can explain why Food Banks are necessary. I know my kids will have a lot of questions. When we are done with our hour I’m going to load them up in our truck and make them watch the boxes get distrubted for a few minutes. They need to understand, the work you do, gets passed on to others. Helping others is a big part of my life, I want it to become part of my legacy.

The boys are actually excited. I’m making them wear masks and gloves. I don’t know if that’s policy at the Food Bank. I’m excited to see how many boxes we can do.

I’m a little bit bragging because I want my Batfans to know I am doing my small part to make my community better. Think about volunteering this summer. I’m leading by example in my house. I’m trying to teach my kids about teamwork, community, and putting others before yourself, even for just an hour a week. It’s very important to stay informed and get involved.

I love you guys. I pray all the families we help today know we put a little love and kindness in each box.

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2 Different Kinds of Adventure

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I had a family meeting with my kids and the nannies this morning. I want to show my kids the need for community support and volunteerism. That’s always been a part of my life. My mom was ALWAYS volunteering me and my little brother to work for the Church for FREE. She said it was good for our soul. I didn’t realize as a kid, how ingrained that would become in me. I get it now with my kids.

We are going to work on a 2 for 1 system. Each week the kids and I get to pick 2 Adventures either around Colorado or around the U.S. And we will also pick 1 Food Bank to go volunteer at. The one thing I know that is Covid safe and is also very much needed is Food Bank volunteers. My kids can help sort food or stuff boxes. They will not be around passing out boxes. I don’t want that. Each person or parent with up to 2 kids can stand in a 6 feet apart, plastic guarded stall and stuff boxes or sort out food. It’s a very slow conveyer belt system. I signed my family up to work this summer. It will be good for them. I want my kids to make new friends. I want them to start building their work in the community. I found a local Food Bank that really needs helpers. I’m all for it. There will be other rewards for my kids as we start this process but for now this is my idea. My nannies will take turns because my daughters can not go. They are not vaccinated yet. All 3 of my boys are so I asked the Food Bank Director if I can have my nanny with one or 2 of my kids as we switch things up each week. She was awesome. And the best part we get to be on a schedule so I can go online and pick which day works best for us. I plan on picking the rainy (Or snowy, I mean it is Denver) days Lol One hour a week is not going to kill my kids. I also signed us up for the Recycling Center. That is going to be very fun for my boys because they get to break down boxes and put them into a big smasher press. They will love to help with that. We will go off and on and figure it out as we go.

I explained to my kids how much this means to me. I told them this is replacing them working in the Church. They liked that part Lol We will see.

So far we redid our backyard, we visited the Botanical Gardens, we went out to eat in a restauarant and we made Memorial Day wreaths that we went back home to have my cousins place on our family gravestones. Next weekend when we fly back to Nebraska I will take the kids out to the cemeteries and show my kids their wreaths. I’m trying, guys. I want my kids to grow up knowing that helping the world is the only way they will be raised. I pray our world heals and that I am part of that change.

Today we are going to swim and play outside. Both of my yards just got mowed so it’s time to enjoy them. I love it. This part of the year is beautiful. Denver is breathtaking on the clear days with the sun shining. I’m happy we live here.

Have a great weekend guys! I love you all. Thank you for continuing to be a part of my Batfan community.

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Back home in Denver

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It’s good to be home. We have been home and enjoying getting our life back on track. Can we even say normal? This whole year is not normal. I’m doing the best I can to shield my kids from too much information on this global pandemic. They know something big is going on, however, they are not sure what it really means. That’s how I’m keeping it for now.

My kids are very happy to be back home. They are really enjoying being home and playing in their rooms with their own toys. I missed my bed. It’s stupid but I missed my own bed.

We began to transplant some of the stuff we planted in Hawaii. I had things in orange containers, but the other stuff had to stay. Mads said he is going to take care of it. I hope they flourish. The kids and I have begun our gardening here, we picked a spot that would be sunny but not full on sun the entire year. I think we have a great start. When I can I will go get more things to plant but for now it is not essential so I’m not even worrying about it. Remember, everything I have started out as seeds. I don’t want plant starters because for me that’s cheating. I want to grow the entire way through.

The other day my former nanny Sarah, had her baby girl! She is healthy, Sarah is healthy, everyone is finally at home at Sarah’s parents’ home and enjoying the sweet little bundle. Sarah has turned in the DNA for testing and in a few weeks she will know who the father of her kid is. It’s a little up in the air. It’s either David, her ex-boyfriend, or it’s the random party hook-up guy. I’m very happy to know that Sarah and her baby made it through everything and they got the heck into safety as soon as possible. She has a beautiful name and even better middle name. And she missed Lindsay’s birthday by 1 day. Lindsay told her she better push hard, she wasn’t sharing her birthday Lol

Happy Birthday to Lindsay, this past Sunday was the celebration of the Nascar Experience that Drew and I got her. She loves it. She is going to go as soon as they can schedule it. It may be next year. I’m happy she’s happy. We didn’t know what to get her at all. I’m glad she’s staying in Chicago and not going out. She’s working from home and doing the best she can to help our businesses survive.

That’s about it guys. Not much happening. I love being home. I’m excited to get into our summer months. I am opening our pool up this week. It’s a heated pool so come on over if you live in Denver Lol The pool and the hot tub are all hooked into each other so it’s a nice experience. The view from my backyard is dreamy, I can’t wait for our garden to grow and we get to enjoy the full beauty of my home. I’m so blessed.

Stay safe guys. I love you! I hope you are okay. I will start getting back to your messages this week finally. Have a great week!

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It’s starting to Fall around here

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Hey guys! I haven’t updated in a while. I have been out of town and I also broke my hand. I was going to try to one of those dictate into text apps but that wasn’t going so well. Now Brenda is typing for me because Sarah has “attitude right now, I don’t want to help you”. That’s her own words. I’m not sure what I’ve done now.

Some big, BIG, BIG NEWS to update you all on. Sarah is pregnant. It’s obviously NOT MINE in case any troll tries to lie about that. Her ex-boyfriend David and her had one last goodbye that was eventful enough to get her pregnant. Unplanned. She freaked out initially. I tried to fire her twice so she could either fly home to her parents or fly back to Chicago to be with David. She said no. I didn’t have to wait long that weekend after she found out, both her parents and David showed up. She was on the fence on what to do but after much prayer, she’s keeping the baby and raising it as a co-parent with David. They are not back together (Yet, I have hope for the kid, he’s a nice guy) and I’m supposed to shut up about it Lol Maybe that’s why she’s annoyed with me today?

Brenda are you even typing any of this. You know there’s a spell check as you type, right? Brenda? Don’t type all of that. OMG Brenda stop! Very funny. My nanny has some jokes today.

Yes put a space down from my main paragraph. Don’t type that.

Brenda has settled in well. She’s doing a great job with my kids, especially Sky. Guy,s Sky is getting so big. I missed her the most while I was out of town. I came home thinking she wouldn’t even remember me but she did. I love her so much. I’m very happy she’s with us. The boys are causing all kinds of trouble at home and at school. Their new school seems to be working out fine. I wasn’t sure how the school system in Denver would work out but so far, so good. I really enjoy dropping Peace off for some socialization and fun, and the boys into their classroom. We’ve had a few issues with the 3rd grade teacher but that’s been resolved. I hope. I have no idea why the 3rd grade teacher was causing an issue but she did.

I had Lindsay stay at my house to help with the kids while I was out of town. That was fun for them and a headache for me. While I was away, no I’m not paying you to type this blog for me. I’m going to say thank you and then start thinking on what to type for my next blog. Brenda, you better not be typing all of that again. Don’t type when I tell you things, only type to dictate my blog. It’s not funny. No it’s not. This is my blog. Not Brenda’s HAHA time. Fine, we will go get a Starbucks. No. Because I said no. Fine, 1 muffin. That’s it though!!!!!!!!!!

I broke my left hand. Showering was a trick at first so I switched to baths. I don’t fit into any bath tub in North America so that was short lived. Short lived doesn’t have to have a hyphen but you can. Brenda, can we just finish this please!!!! I was already ambidextrous so it wasn’t hard to do things right handed. It’s challenging. What? There’s no I in the ending. It’s just the extrous. I’m getting a little big frustrated with you typing this out. Let’s just wrap it up, go get your Starbucks, and get back home. Okay? Can we just finish this blog please?

Fall weather in Denver has been up and down. Nice sunny days followed by snow (Yes it snowed already once) and then more nice days. The wind is completely different here. I’m still getting used to sitting outside. The kids love Denver I think. They have adjusted well and this is the month when I’m going to start doing playdates for them. I think meeting their little friends and their parents will be interesting.

Giant sigh, Brenda I don’t know who Timmy is yet. Who is he? The one with glasses? Oh he’s a total, wait don’t put that in there.

Let me read this blog please. Thank you Brenda.

I did not want you to put that in there. Edit it all out please. Brenda. Don’t hit publish! Wait, no

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Peaceful morning?

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So far this morning things have been going smoothly. Let’s hope it stays that way. I woke up early still, my insomnia and the losing and turning has been bad. I think I was worried about the school stuff. I’m almost all the way unpacked. I have half a garage stall left of boxes to get through. I have found things I know we don’t need now. I left them in another garage stall to be donated soon. This was a great way to purge things. I have way too many kids toys in my house. I’m so glad I was able to stop most of them from going back inside.

I am starting to like Denver quite a bit. I’m still learning the places to go but I’ve found the essential things, the grocery store and the nearest comic book stores Lol I have to get my latest comic books you know. We are attending the Church where the boys go to school. Peace’s daycare is somewhere else but it’s still a Catholic based place. I think the kids are happy. They love getting out and socializing. It’s a great time for me to get the errands or cleaning up done. I think Denver was a great decision. I am going to love raising my kids here. I am still trying to downsize my life. A lot of the extra properties I own I’m now selling off. I don’t need any of that in my life anymore. With the invention of Air B&B I can now travel with my family and have a more comfortable place to stay than a hotel.

I haven’t had time to really explore the city just yet but I plan to do that soon. I thought those can be some daytime dates with Peace. I don’t really want to take Sky out yet. She has a doctor appointment for a checkup next week but that’s an easy trip. Sarah LOVES Denver. I’m so shocked. I think she’s thinking of staying with us. She wants to finish up a few things and can do it from here. Then she’s thinking of looking for a job here. I think she really was trying to get away from her ex-boyfriend. It was a back and forth thing for a few months and she wanted a fresh start. Hey, I’ve been there, I know how that feels.

My life is going great. I have met someone who is amazing. I’m happy. We have so much in common it’s crazy. She is so nice and sweet, and she loves family life. No she’s not in her 20’s. I know, I know, finally Sam! I’m learning. It’s a very fun time. We laugh every day. She is so funny and smart. She’s been teaching me a lot of things I’ve never known about. Her job is very interesting to me. And she’s on my Twitter. We DM because we want the privacy. It’s cute. Then she calls me out of nowhere and I get happy immediately. I usually start laughing as soon as I pick up the phone because I can’t believe she’s calling me during the day for a few minutes. We are one of those cute couples everyone hates. This could be my first true partnership. Sarah talked to her on the phone yesterday while I was feeing Sky. They got along fine. Sarah said she seems very sweet. She is! And gorgeous. We are both very happy.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. I will update on Monday to share how my weekend went. I’m sure I will have some fun stories to share. See you guys soon! I love ya’ll!

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School is starting Monday, am I ready for this?

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Hey everyone. I’m finally back from my trip(s) and ready to update you all. Sky is doing great. She’s starting in her little fussiness already but it’s fine. I’m doing all I can to bond with her. I’m getting up at night, I’m doing diaper duty, feedings, holding, kissing, rocking, carrying around. She is a blessing. She’s very easy during the day. At night she has begun to get a little cranky but I get it. At night or deep into the early mornings I’m also cranky Lol

The boys are wonderful. They really are great kids. They help with their sisters and our pets. We made it all the way to our new house with the dog and both cats. The parakeets got rehomed. I didn’t want to deal with it. I really didn’t. The lady they went to loves them, she posts photos on Facebook and she keeps them active. I’m very happy to see they are okay. That was my main worry. Heston and Alex are getting taller. They are sprouting up so fast. I love watching them grow. Peace is still my sweet baby girl. I love her to pieces or (peaces Haha) and I know how happy she is here. She LOVES her room. I can barely get her out of there. Winnie the Pooh all over. The boys we did baseball theme since they are getting into that most. Sky’s nursery is clouds and sky of course. It’s all working out.

So we moved to Denver, Colorado finally. The move was okay. The business trip I had to squish into this move weekend ended up extending. I had to go, do business, leave, go back to Canada. It was very hard. I found out I don’t like Canada but I sort of like Canada? It’s different. I’m not sure how much business we can do in that area but we did finally made an end all decision on Detroit. It’s just not making us money. The commercial buildings have to be torn down and the dirt has to be EPA approved before we can rebuild. It’s costs us way more than we can get back through leasing. It really has been upsetting so we have decided to pull business out of Detroit this winter. We made the announcement today. Of course it didn’t go over well but I understand. We gave everyone 3 months notice. That should help. I wanted to tell our employees in our factories first because they depend on that paycheck. Our staff can fold into my other firms around the U.S. so I’m not worried about that. It’s the best decision. Denver is awesome! I love it here. I am finally relaxing and enjoy my house. I’ve been here, left, been here, left.

My kids are all outside right now playing in the backyard. Sky is hanging out with me in her baby seat. I’m so thankful that my new nannies are working out. It really was something I’ve been worried about. My kids love her already and our new neighbor (Nickname is on Facebook but I won’t put it on here Lol) comes over a lot to help or hang out. She’s very nice and thoughtful. We are the only 2 houses in this area but I’m sure more construction will be happening some day. I bought this lot and the one next door so that I could have a huge backyard for the kids. I think everyone is happy. I had to do a ton of bribing at first. I had gifts for a few days in a row per kid. That way they would be excited to stay. I’ve been planning this move for so long I feel like a huge relief? is that what this is? now that’s done. I don’t know. There’s still so much to do.

I’m thankful to my family members that have come out to help set out house and watch the kids with the nanny while I was away on business. I made a huge Taco bar last night to thank them and we had a heated discussion about my weekend plans. I’m going back up to Canada. I have one last thing I need to get to and this time I didn’t need my staff with me. It’s so hard to talk privately, to plan privately with 5 people with me 24/7. This will be my last trip for a while. I’m going to have to stay put and raise my babies. Sky and I will be getting plenty of bonding time. The boys start school on Monday morning and Peace is going to a half day daycare program with the nanny. She’s getting a jumpstart to early education but it’s mostly about socializing. I don’t have a mommy for her so I’m trying to introduce women into her life. If she doesn’t like it she’s coming home. I’m not going to force her into that program she is still pretty young. I’m just trying it out. I think Miss Social Butterfly Peace will be fine though. It’s not at the boys’ school so it’s a little bit of a ride between the two places in the morning. We have our school supplies ready, backpacks full, teacher supplies and extras ready and new school clothes. I have to get the boys haircut today but other than that, we are ready for school!

Who else is stoked school has started? The boys get to go all day long. I am so excited! I get my girls all afternoon and we can play and learn and just really enjoy a little quiet time. I can’t wait for Monday.

Everything else is fine. I’m just busy trying to get my new house in order, find the stores, and figure out what I’m going to do with my next chapter.

I have met someone. We have been talking almost a month now. She’s great. She had inserted herself into my life around the whole Peyton dinner thing in late July. That discussion started something between her and I we weren’t looking for. It’s always so great to start out as a friend first. We are still in the “Oh this is new, you are new, I like talking to you” phase. No pressure, no drama, just laughs and life stories going back and forth. I’m opening up to her more than I did with some of my past relationships. She’s well aware of my kids, my new born, my life decisions. She’s shared her stories too. She also has kids so that’s very cool. We have a date on Saturday. Wish me luck Batfans!

I love you all. I will try to update more. Now that I’ve moved things might slow down a little. Prayers for everyone dealing with all of our world’s tragedies. Mass shootings, Hurricanes, Forest Fires, Protests for weeks on end. It’s all too much to get into. I pray the world heals and finds love for each other. That’s what life is all about. Oh and ice cream. Definitely ice cream!

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It’s August 1st, 1 month to go!

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Having my kids full time with no help has kept my pretty busy. I love it. My kids are hilarious. They say the funniest things and my gosh how smart they all are. Alex has finally hit the last of his milestones so he’s all caught up with Heston. Thank goodness. They are now the same height, within 2 pounds of each other, and have all the same abilities. It has been a lot of hard work for him and I’m so proud he stuck it out. I kept telling him he’s going to catch up soon. He was not listening to me but that’s okay. We are finally there! We had our checkups on Wednesday and I was able to see the growth chart since they were babies up until now. WOW! Just wow. A huge difference. I don’t know how I have survived all of this. I really don’t.

I feel like all of my food prep work with the kids in the morning with breakfast is helping us keep a semi-normal schedule for them. We have been out in the city going on adventures and exploring a lot of the kid friendly sites. We have spent more time down at Navy Pier than I can remember. There is so much for us to do. This weekend the nannies are taking the kids so I can have my first set of movers come in and help me pack up some of the spare rooms we don’t use. Mostly the nannies bedrooms. They did take all of their things over the past month so it’s just a shell of a room in each one. All of their furniture is going to a Domestic Violence recovery house. And all of my spare beds in my house and the guest house will also be going. Lindsay finally got the key to her new house (Cough cough mansion) and she’s out of here. She is so happy. She still comes over to eat with us because she’s not going to cook yet. She said she hasn’t had time to go get groceries so I told her I would take her to my club (Haha Sam’s club) this weekend and we will load up both of my Range Rovers with stuff for her.

I am really going to miss living in Lake Forest. This place has served as my home base for over 10 years. I have grown so much as a man and now as a father here. It’s home. I just need to move on though. Selling it will really be an emotional thing for me. I do have several friends interested in buying it and I’m definately getting back more than I paid for it. This month is going to be a lot to deal with.

But Denver…..oh Denver, Colorado. You had me at Mile High! It’s closer to Alex’s doctors and I really want his growth spurts to be monitored and we take all of the precaustions we can with him. It’s the best move for my kids and right before they start their main school. My goodness I’m going to have 2 kindergartners next month. What??? Their birthdays fall within range of them going in. They will be not the youngest in their class but it’s better I get them in early. I don’t want to make them wait another year. We did so much prep work last year to get them a really good start. Plus I really think they are ready. Socially they are both so friendly. They make friends very easily because the kids are amazed they look exactly alike. It’s hard the first week to know who is who but I put them in shirts that have their names on the back. So far they aren’t hip to the fact they can just change shirts. I know they will pull that one me when they are older Lol I hear almost all twins do it. Thankfully they are still my sweet little boys and I don’t have to worry about those kinds of things….yet.

Guys, my daughter is perfect. She is so sweet, so smart, and she runs this house. Whenver she’s upset we all 3 rush to her side to see what’s going on. The boys are already protective over her. Maybe too much so. I admit when the boys are in school I am absolutely going to love my one on one time with her. Last year we did the shopping and errands together. Or we would go have fun play dates and do fun things together. She’s so easy to take care of. I love every day with her. She’s much easier than the boys and I have to say it’s special bonding time I don’t want to give up.

That’s why I won’t be working. I will be available as a consultant. The offices can call me anytime but I’m no longer going to be making many decisions. It’s all on Lindsay. I trust her. Of course I do, I just gave her the keys to my empire. She is the right person to run things, she has amazing staffs and she knows how I expect things to run. Kindness, take care of our customers as we take care of our employees, and pay them all well. She has done a fantastic job and I’m so proud she’s helping me keep my businesses not only running but successful.

I want to raise my kids. I want to meet the love of my life and get married again. I have so many hopes for moving. It’s a fresh start and I can’t wait. I’m so excited.

How is your summer going, guys? Do anything fun? I just uploaded all of the photos and the videos from this week. Go check that out on our Family Facebook page. I hope you enjoy seeing my kids grow up. They are so happy. I’m doing the best I can to raise them up right, whatever that means. I hope you all know how much I appreciate you still coming here and reading about my life after all of these years. The trolls have gone way and crawled back under the rocks they live in. It’s nice and quiet and I love it. Life couldn’t be better. It’s boring just the way I want it!