 Today is the first day of many articles full of useful information. Well, maybe not useful for everyone, but the stories may brighten your day a little. I am a full time stay-at-home, work-at-home, play-at-home Dad/ebay seller/photographer/writer. In the weeks to follow I will share with you some of the when, where, why, what, who, and how questions and experiences I have.
First let me tell you who I am, where I live, how I got here, what I do, why I do it, and when it all began.
.JPG "Why can't I go play with those cows, Daddy?") Why can't I go play with those cows, Daddy?
Who I am: My name is James Grayson. I have two kids and am luckily married to a beautiful and very smart woman. Our oldest child is a boy who is almost three. He’s the one full of the questions I hear all day. Our youngest is a 4 month-old girl who just can’t seem to stop smiling at me! She already knows that I am wrapped around her little pinky. This child will cost me a fortune someday. Now if I can just find that fortune…
Where I live and how I got here: I live in Austin, the best city in Texas! I’m sure some of you will disagree, but out of all the cities in Texas I have visited or lived in, this one beats them all. I grew up in the Dallas area and moved to Lubbock after high school to suffer in Red Raiderville. No offense to you Lubbockites, but it’s too dusty out there for this city boy. I look back on that as 14 months of “finding myself” only to end up being more lost than ever. I moved to Austin on January 4, 1993 with all of my stuff packed in an '82 Chevy Silverado. I remember the date well as I was hoping to forget the past 14 months in prairie dog land and start over.
What I do and why I do it: I started staying home part time with our son after he was born. As most of you probably know, childcare costs are expensive! Even part time daycare was costly, so we took him out and I quit my job. He now goes to preschool in the mornings so there is a little quiet time to spend with my baby girl. That’s all about to change in a few weeks when school is out. My first summer at home with 2 kids. Yikes!
When it all began: It all started in 1972 when I was a twinkle in my mother’s eye. I’ll spare you the next 30 years for now. For the sake of this column, it all began in October of 2002 when my wife and I found out she was finally pregnant. I knew my boys could get one past her goalie! She has a really good goalie, too. We spent 10 months playing the game before I finally scored a goal. Whew! It was worth every minute of it, though. The next time we tried to get pregnant it only took about 4 months. My team got stronger in the off-season and my boys were ready to play!
There is the short version for you. I am sure you’re all glad I did not go into more detail in that last paragraph! I’ll try and keep this column as family-friendly as possible in case you want to read them to your kids at bedtime. I can’t promise anything, so I would suggest you read them for yourself first and then skip over any parts that might be offensive for tiny ears.
And remember the best answer will always be, “Because I said so.”
If you would like to read more stories by James Grayson please visit: www.1onceuponatime.blogspot.com
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Quirkee Voices 
