Potty Training Boot Camp
This may not be the most exciting thing in the world today, however, it encompasses my world so completely that I feel compelled to write about it.
My daughter and I have been re-united. It's been a roller coaster that would make any parent's sotmach churn.
Daily, across the newswire I read reports regarding state issues with family law. As you dig deep into this topic and you have but half a heart, you may find it broken. Case law, no state excluded, contains the most tragic stories of our time.
These are stories of terroism, suicide, children having children and parentlessness. These are stories of poverty - scandle and fraud.
These are not the stories of happily ever after, of kindness, of virtue of love.
These are not the stories of a child's best interests.
These are not the stories of Disneyland Deadbets, as an industry would have you to believe.
These are the stories that brought me to tears and prayer on oh so many occasions. As I read these stories - the stories of children and the family law system, as I was forced to develop a strategy to become a father to my own child.
Fraud is so rampant in family law I can hardly blame those that choose this path. It is often reccomended by Attorney's. Sadly, in the courts of family law - the children always lose.
Success in court relies on precedents on the extremes, far away from the normal parent child relationships. An attorney's ability to cite or miscite case law relies on the clients ability to emulate these extremes. In my investigation of Taney County Attorneys I came to understand how this was achieved. Succesful court stragies often leave the child that walked in with two parents to walk out with one.
I rememver being on the stand, the judge tells me I have one my case. Actually, this wasn't really true - not in the terms he was stating.
My victory was different.
My victory was never reporting anything about my child's mother of ill report. My victory is that I can teach my child to honor her father without dishonoring her mother.
Psycologist report teenage pregnancy, drug use and suicide to have direct correlation to the presence of a biological father. Though there are many great step parents out there, the bilogical father's presence in the child's life is a key indicator in a child's success in life.
As fathers, we can contribute to our children's well being. All we really have to do is be there. And when we are - statistically we contribute more. When we're around our children are healthier and so are we.
My daughter is down for a nap and when she wakes up it's time for potty training boot camp. This excercise involved kool-aid, The Lion King, the elmo potty doll and patience. Yes, the most exciting thing I have to report today is that I can make a two year old "go pee in the potty".
Oh yes - I can bring home the bacon and I can cook it up too.
