Q&A with the Kids - Part III - Jared

(NOTE: You always hear from me, so I thought it might be fun to hear from the kids for a change. In the spotlight today is our 26-year-old son Jared. He has a very cool job – if often stressful with long hours – as Senior Coordinator, Baseball Information & Communications, for Major League Baseball's Tampa Bay Rays. Thus, he's the only one of our kids who doesn't live close to home. We go visit him when we can, though, and we're very excited for the bright future he and his fiancée Lyndsey have ahead of them.)

What was the best thing about growing up in a big family?

I'll always be grateful for the chaos of growing up in a house with seven people and a bunch of pets. There was always something to do and someone to hang out with. I also think I had the best of both worlds being the middle child. I had less responsibility than Elissa and Chloe and still got to pretend I was in charge of Melanie and Jack.

What things didn't you like about it?

I got sick of the lack of privacy pretty often. I've always been introverted and enjoy having time to myself. That was a lot harder growing up than it is now. 

Jared & me at an outdoor hockey game in Rochester, NY, December 2013

What are your favorite memories of things we did as a family?

I loved all the traditions we had and still have. Things like Friday night pizza, Pennsylvania theme park vacations, backyard fires, British soccer camps and Harry Potter movie marathons come to mind. I was also a big fan of family kickball games, mostly because I took them more seriously than anybody else. 

What is something you wish you could have done or had growing up, but you couldn't because you had four siblings?

Outside of a couple Florida vacations, we didn't do much traveling beyond a state or two over. I don't think I went on my first flight until I was 12 or 13.

Awww, Baby Jared

Do you want kids of your own? Why or why not?

Yes, but not any time soon. I think 1-2 kids is probably where I'll end up. You guys are insane for having five.

What was your favorite thing Mom used to make for dinner? Do you ever make it for yourself?

It has to be her pizza. Honorable mentions go to beef stroganoff, meatloaf, taco soup and lasagna. I don't do much cooking during baseball season, but I used Mom's cinnamon roll recipe this year for Christmas.

Q&A with the Kids - Part II - Chloe

(NOTE: You always hear from me, so I thought it might be fun to hear from the kids for a change. Today we chat with our 28-year-old daughter Chloe. Dr. Chloe Edmonds, to be precise. She earned her PhD last summer, and she and her husband Michael are expecting their first child in September. Oh, and she also plans to go to medical school. Makes me tired just thinking about it...)

What was the best thing about growing up in a big family?

I think the best thing was always having someone to play with. It was never lonely growing up with so many siblings. Plus, each sibling relationship is so different based upon gender combinations and age differences, so we had a lot of unique relationships.

What things didn't you like about it?

Being #2 of 5 kids can mean some responsibilities that you didn't sign up for. I never resented my little siblings! But you do take on a bit more of a parent role as you move up in the birth order.

What are your favorite memories of things we did as a family?

I loved the "stay-cations" we took, especially when we went to all of the parks in Wickliffe. These were a lot less stressful than full-on vacations, but they still had the full extent of family bonding and fun.

What is something you wish you could have done or had growing up, but you couldn't because you had four siblings?

I think there were times when we had a little less money than Mom/Dad would have liked, and that can possibly be traced back to the number of kids. This meant we didn't get name brand clothes or shoes unless they were hand-me-downs. And when you're in middle school, this seems very important! In hindsight it's not a big deal, but I do remember getting tired of hand-me-downs pretty early on. Also I always wanted a trampoline, but I do not know if we never got one due to our financial situation or other factors, haha! (EDITOR'S NOTE: Other factors. I was too lazy to mow around a trampoline.)

That's Chloe operating on a pig...really.

Do you want kids of your own? Why or why not?

I sure hope so, considering we have one on the way! I think we want 2-3 kids total, but who knows? Michael and I both grew up in families with 4+ kids, and while we had good experiences, we personally think a medium-sized family would be ideal for us.

What was your favorite thing Mom used to make for dinner? Do you ever make it for yourself?

I had all sorts of favorites. One in particular was beef stroganoff. I don't cook super often these days, but beef stroganoff is still a popular one in our household. I also loved her lasagna, but truthfully I've never been brave enough to try cooking that one.

Q&A with the Kids - Part I - Elissa

 (NOTE: You always hear from me, so I thought it might be fun to hear from the kids for a change. We begin our Q&A With the Kids interview series with my 31-year-old daughter Elissa. She is among the smartest, funniest and most interesting people I know, inside or outside of my family.)

What was the best thing about growing up in a big family?

Always having someone to play with/boss around. Never had to worry about finding extra players for a board game. We had enough people to make two sparsely-filled kickball teams. I also feel like the general sense of belonging and love was good. And I got very good at reading in noisy environments because my house was loud 24/7. I have since lost this talent, but people noticed it when I had it. 

What things didn't you like about it?

Four people to play with is also four people to fight with! And you have to share everything: TV time, computer time, toys, parental attention, food, bedrooms, and everything else. I still think I'm terrible at sharing because I got used to hoarding resources as a lifestyle. And I can't eat snacks normally, I have to devour them as soon as they enter the house out of inherited fear I won't get any in time. It scares Mark and he often has to hide junk food from me in various secret cupboards. I also didn't like when I babysat Jack and he threw up on me.

What are your favorite memories of things we did as a family?

I think we had great vacations and staycations. I really liked the week we stayed at home and pretended to have a vacation because Dad took off work, which was very Midwest poor of us but in a classy way. I liked going to Red Robin for birthday sundaes and freckled lemonade and having dinner at Grandma's house on Wednesdays. I liked board game tournaments and family kickball. We did a lot of other stuff like making snowmen and playing Barbies and going to the library and community pool, but not all seven of us at once, so I am not including them here. 

Elissa and me, 1994

What is something you wish you could have done or had growing up, but you couldn't because you had four siblings?

TRAVEL. Before college I had only been to Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Maryland, and Florida. My boss has two kids and they've spent a month in Scandanavia, a month in Italy, a month in Taiwan and Japan, etc. every summer. Those little California worms have no idea how lucky they are. 

Do you want kids of your own? Why or why not?

No! And that is a full sentence requiring no explanation.

Elissa and me, 2013

What was your favorite thing Mom used to make for dinner? Do you ever make it for yourself?

I love Mom's homemade granola. Her beef stroganoff and London broil really stand out to me, too. And obviously her pizza. I've been vegan for 8 years now, so while I still have her pizza with vegan cheese and veggies, it's not as easy to veganize a flank steak for London Broil. I make my own beef stroganoff recipe now with Beyond Steak Tips and Kite Hill cream cheese, and I make my own granola with whatever grains and seeds I have in the cupboard!! 

Here's what I'm doing to prepare to become a grandfather

Nothing. I'm doing nothing.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited my daughter Chloe is due to give birth to our first grandchild in 4 1/2 months.

It's just that, in the grand scheme of things (haha, "grand"), Grandpa is the most fun and easiest job ever. My assignment, once this little one is born, will be to love him, play with him, and teach him stuff.

I can absolutely do that. All of it. Bring it on.

There's no manual to read in advance. I don't have to strip wallpaper and paint nursery walls like Terry and I did back in the 90s when we started having kids. And speaking of Terry, she is already in the process of preparing our house for a baby. My input there is minimal.

The only thing I have to do as Grandpa is to avoid doing the one thing my own dad, an otherwise outstanding grandfather, did when Elissa was a toddler.

Elissa was at my parents' house eating lunch, I think. Terry was there, too, and specifically said Elissa couldn't have any potato chips until she ate some of her healthier food.

But my dad – always one to spoil his grandchildren – gave Elissa those chips anyway. Just handed her the can of Pringles, right there in front of her mother.

Terry fumes about it to this day.

Note to self: If Chloe says the child cannot have or do something, no matter how much I want to spoil him, honor his mother's wishes.

Unless I want her holding a grudge against me 30 years later.