From a Dad's perspective!

I am going to blog about being a Dad to my two kids. I am going to sort out through typing the challenges and thoughts that crowd my mind. Maybe it will keep me focused; it definitely will help me relieve the churning of the thoughts that so often stew away far to long without clarity or action on my part.

My daughter is a gifted equestrian competitor; in the past four years since starting to ride she has consistently achieved unbelievable results in the sport she is passionate about.  In 2008 Kelsey won first and second for the province of Alberta in her level of competition. In 2009 Kelsey won Spruce Meadows Novice Champion for her level. In 2010 Kelsey won Champion at Bow Valley Classic at Anderson ranch. Champion of both Riqueza Riding Academy shows and out of four opportunities at the Tucson Fall Classic in Arizona last fall she won Champion in One, Reserve Champion in Two and missed her third Reserve Champion ribbon by 1 ½ points.

Here is the hitch however, Kelsey has a secret, Kelsey has ADHD and struggles with school in a big way! Now as a teenager this is further complicated by the mood swings and hormone swings that come with puberty. My struggle is to be supportive both emotionally and financially while assisting my beautiful and talented daughter in living her life independently and pursuing her dreams despite the Nay Sayers and Detractors which seem to dot ever stage of her adventure. One of the steps on this process is to find Kelsey a sponsor so that we can better develop her riding career. If you want to see details of this please visit her website at www.ktsequestrian.com.

My son has totally different challenges; he is smart as a whip, popular and bright but despite this he is very reticent to take risks in any aspect of his life. He recently starred in a very funny play at school which was extremely well received and he excelled at not only knowing his lines but keeping the whole cast focused! The thing that I noted about this was that prior to seeing the performance he in no way let on that his was a leading roll; from his preamble you would have pegged him as one of the supporting actors! It will be interesting to see where this all unfolds; again I just follow on and try my best to ensure a balanced approach. His next venture was to tryout for Badminton, this didn’t work out for him, however he doesn’t seem to be to affected by this rather he is carrying on with his regular routine anxiously waiting for spring to arrive.

So there you have it… Entry number one on this matter of blogging about my adventures of being a Dad!