Based On a True Story

Mothers, mom, momma, however you want to refer to them...there is one special one. I'm not referring to my biological mother, but the woman who was there for me every day. I'm not discounting my adoption or the act of love to place a baby up for adoption, but rather focusing on the woman I called "Mom." I can't believe it's been exactly 5 years since she passed away. Most of you know, she was diagnosed with cancer in 2004 while I was living in Brazil. After radiation and other treatments, the cancer went into remission. Years later, she was re-diagnosed with cancer that had spread and was in stage 4. To make a long story shorter, she passed away after a long fight with cancer on August 17th, 2010. At the time, my emotions were all over the place and I didn't know how much I'd truly miss her until much later. Nancy Hunsaker, the woman I call "Mom," was an independent, strong willed, determined, and a service-oriented woman. I miss her ...

Playing in Cress Creek on a hike The wedding is fast approaching. As the summer melts away, the wedding has been creeping up! I seemed like yesterday that I had the kids give Suzie the rings while she was getting ready. It seems that the day would never get here, but here we are...less than 3 weeks away. The venue is booked, the menu is set, the cake baker is prepped, and I am nervous. I am not nervous because I have doubt...no, no. I am nervous because I don't want to mess up. Diabetes in a cup This moment takes me back to when I first started driving with some friends. As we were driving down Beaverton Hillsdale Highway one evening, a thought passed through my mind. "I am responsible for the friends in my car." I am responsible for not only Suzie but also these two kids. What I say or do can completely effect them and their futures. That...ladies and gentlemen, is great responsibility. Well, let us put this serious subject to the side and update everyone ...

Parenthood is defined as "the state of being a parent and the responsibilities involved..." Thanks Webster's Dictionary for providing a very generic and non-descriptive definition. There is nothing in the dictionary to define or even describe what I like to call, "insta-parenthood." Suzie and I have been together almost 3 years now. At first, we kept the kids at a distance in case things didn't work out. As time would tell, we wanted to become a family together. I've asked a few friends who are now parents if they were ready. The most common response, "Mark, you'll never be ready. It just happens." That's a fine answer, but that doesn't quite describe my situation. Suzie has two wonderful, but crazy kids. The boy, Kayden, is 4. Rose, the girl, is 2. They are bundles of energy and personality. They love you one moment and say, "go away" the next. It has been a most incredible journey to enter full speed into parenthood ...

"You're looking husky. Have you gained a few pounds?" That infamous phrase began my journey to weight loss. After the divorce, I had put on a mere 40 pounds. I was weighing in at a solid 180 pounds at my stout 5' 8". I didn't feel fat, I was just in denial of my thickness. I was down in Utah with my family. I took my shirt off at the swimming pool and my dad popped that nice phrase at me. Those simple 9 words created an intrinsic drive for change. It's funny how the little things can make the biggest difference. He didn't mean it in a malicious way, but I took it as a moment for change. Upon arriving home in Idaho, I found a copy of Insanity with Shaun T on Craigslist. They say the best things can be found on CL. If you don't know to what I'm referring...check out my very first blog post. I had seen the stupid infomercials on late night TV for Beachbody products like Insanity, P90X, and the Brazilian Butt Lift. I had seen all of the befo...

I swear I spend the majority of my time thinking of what will the title be and how will I start writing? I still can't believe people want to read this... If you were unaware, I am just about done with my Master's degree in Education Administration. The degree would allow me to become a principal. A few years ago, I had run out of excuses. Why shouldn't I go back and get a higher degree? Seemed like a perfectly logical thing to do after a few years of teaching. The first obstacle was the GRE. I hadn't taken a standardized test in a few years but was ready. I went to Barnes and Noble and purchased the official ETA Study Guide for the GRE (the new and improved). Ha! What a joke. I think I opened the book once. If you know of anyone needing to study for the GRE or would like a fancy book on their shelf, just let me know. I'm not going to lie, I fell asleep during the writing portion of the test. I had stayed up late "studying" for the test, oh I mean I wa...

"You are all fine athletes...thanks in most part...to me." -Big Red from Bring it On Four or five years ago, I saw a posting on District 91's website for an assistant cheerleading coach at Skyline High School. I thought it would be an excellent opportunity to have fun coaching something I did growing up and making some extra money. Ha,  the money...I'll get to that later. I applied for the job and met Paula Ashby for the very first time. She seemed excited to have someone with "my background." Then again, my background consisted of high school cheer, one year on a competitive all-star team, and a year on the Portland State Cheerleading team. After discussing it in depth, I decided it was not the best thing for me. So a few years passed and my interaction was minimal with the Skyline team. After my divorce, I thought..."why not?" I applied for the position again. Adjusting to the 6:30AM practice schedule did take some time and a mas...

Craigslist. Yes, we met on Craigslist. Many may wonder, how in the world did that work out? I've heard horror stories of people who have been killed over something on CL. That was not the case when I met Suzie (obviously, since we are both still alive and not in prison). I guess I need to start from the beginning. After the divorce, I had tried all sorts of ways to meet new people. It was definitely out of my comfort zone to initiate talking to a female. After several months, I eventually gave up on the paid dating sites. I cancelled my subscriptions and just walked away from it all.  I decided one night to try the personal section on CL. I clicked on "Strictly Platonic" then W4M. I started talking to a girl. She seemed nice and we even went to Dr. Slaughters (a Halloween attraction). We remained friends for a few weeks but nothing progressed past that. I found another ad on CL in the same section. As I read it, I thought, "why not?" It was a mother o...