I have some great news and I couldn't think of a better day then Father's Day to share it.
A lot of wonderful things have happened in my life and I have my family to thank for most of them. I think of myself as having two families actually... the first is made up of my wife Kelly and our two children, the second is much larger and it includes all of you in the diabetes online community.
Kelly, Cole and Arden have brought countless joys into my life and the time that I've spent with my children over the last twelve years as a stay-at-home dad has been, and continues to be, an irreplaceable gift. My family has taught me lessons that I never imagined existed. Our experiences, struggles and victories have left me with a million great stories and a unique perspective. What is traditionally considered to be a mother's role in our families is so much more then I expected when I quit my job in the spring of 2000 to stay at home with Cole. The immense effort, endless worry and constant feeling that I'm not doing my best is but a fraction of what it means to be the parent whose responsibilities range from grocery shopping to amateur child psychologist and everything in between.
As if from a dream the two things in my life that I feel most passionate about have converged and their combination has brought me a wonderful gift. Being a stay-at-home dad has lent me a sincere appreciation for a traditional mother's life while my five years as a diabetes blogger have taught me how to tell my story without (hopefully) boring the pants off of my readers. Writing for all of you is not unlike being a stay-at-home dad as I find both to not only be a privilege, but an honor that my life is greater for. When I started this blog I considered myself a storyteller that had a young child with diabetes and my only hope was that sharing my experiences might make yours just a little easier. The blog grew, my writing along with it and today Arden's Day is one of my greatest sources of pride.
It is with that pride held very close to my heart that I type these next words... My first book from Spry Publishing will be on shelves in June of 2013. The yet to be titled book about my life as a stay-at-home dad and a diabetes caregiver to my daughter Arden is my first written offering outside of the blogging world (unless you count 'Star Wanted to be a Star' and 'Grammy and the Green Ford', my two 'Young Author Award' winning efforts from grammar school).
A brief announcement about my book as well as a number of others from some prominent DOC members can be found on Spry's website. I'd love to tell you what they said about my writing here but I'm actually a little embarrassed. I can share this however... I am working very hard to give you all a book that lives up to the high praise that you'll read if you follow that link.
Wishing you a very Happy Father's Day!
Best,
Scott