Tag Archives: family

Sweet Home Alabama, We’re Coming Home To You!

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20160511_202520I love a place where people greet each other with a “Roll Tide” or a “War Eagle.” I love a place where I can bite into a juicy Milo’s cheeseburger while their famous sauce drips through my beard. I love a place where the only thing sweeter than a Southern belle is the tea.

That place I love is Alabama, and Alabama is home for me and Natosha.

Alabama is where me and Natosha first laid eyes on each other. Alabama is where I asked her to marry me. Alabama is where we both said, “I do.” Alabama is where a majority of our family lives, and it really is where our heart is.

We both look forward to starting a family sometime in the near future, and we would love to be close to our family when we decide to do so.

“The magic thing about home is that it feels good to leave, and it feels even better to come back” -Wendy Wunder

The best barbecue, the sweetest tea, and that Southern hospitality. That’s just part of what we love about home, and that’s just a few reasons why we are looking forward to moving back to the Heart of Dixie at the beginning of April.

Sweet home Alabama, where the skies are so blue. Sweet home Alabama, Lord we’re coming home to you!

M David Scott

 

 

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Marriage Looks Good On Us

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“I am nothing special, of this I am sure. I am a common man with common thoughts and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough.”

This quote from The Notebook is perfect, because I also feel that I’m just a common man leading a common life. And I love a woman with all my heart and soul, and love will always be enough.

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When I graduated college 4 1/2 years ago I never thought I would find a women to spend my life with. I had trouble finding women similar to me that I enjoyed to be around  — especially not one I would want to marry. But all of that would eventually change.

About 3 years ago, I was making a decent income at the Honda Manufacturing plant in Lincoln, paying bills, and had a potential career job, but I soon became unhappy working through their repetitive routine. I knew God placed me there for a reason, but I was unsure of why at that time. After a year of working there I started praying to God everyday, multiple times throughout the day. Talking to him was the only way to make it through my shift. Finally, there was a day that I broke down and asked God “Why?” I wondered why he would place me somewhere that I hated so much. I knew it was good money, but the money wasn’t bringing me happiness.

The week after I asked God “why” is when I first laid eyes on Natosha. She was being introduced as the newest associate on our processing line. I remember thinking about how beautiful she was, but it was about a week later when we actually talked to each other for the first time. We were both placed offline working together on a process, and I immediately knew after that process that there was something about this woman. I had finally realized why God put me at Honda.

We both stayed and worked overtime each day so we would have extra time to talk and get to know each other better. We began having lunch together everyday, and soon it would turn into a beautiful relationship.

We found love when we least expected it. Sometimes its funny how God’s plans come together.

Less than a year later, God blessed us with an opportunity to leave Honda by moving to Louisiana for a job opportunity. This not only allowed us to find jobs better suited for us, but also gave us more time to spend with each other and help grow this relationship.

Only months after moving to Louisiana, I proposed to Natosha at Vulcan Park while on vacation in Birmingham. Vulcan was where we had our first official date and our first kiss as well. I already knew her answer, but that moment she said “Yes” filled my heart with happiness and joy – I couldn’t wait to make her my wife!

DSC_0415I’m more than pleased to say that we’re finally married! The wedding was perfect, and everything we had been waiting for. It feels amazing to be married to my best friend – she is the only person that can put that smile on my face, the one who finds a way to stay positive in a sea of negativity, my biggest fan, and she loves me in a way I never knew was possible.

When I said, “for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part,” I meant it. It doesn’t matter what life tries to throw at us, we’ll always be there side-by-side fighting through it. I look forward to spending the rest of my life with her.

We never stopped believing in love, and we feel blessed to have finally found it. I’ve been told by numerous people that marriage is both fun and rewarding. I can’t wait for us to find out for ourselves.

MDavidScott

Adam LaRoche Walks Away From Baseball

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Adam LaRoche

I wanted to stay away from this story, but the story just won’t go away. By now you’ve heard of Adam LaRoche and his decision to step away from Major League Baseball. Adam retired from baseball and gave up a $13 million contract after his team, the Chicago White Sox, told him that his 14-year-old son was no longer welcomed in the clubhouse.

His decision came from a disagreement between him and team vice president Ken Williams. LaRoche claim his son, Drake, has been a regular presence in the White Sox locker room, and the organization agreed that he could be around the team prior to LaRoche signing a contract. He also said that there has been no problems from teammates regarding his son in the clubhouse.

In a statement released by LaRoche, he said Williams wanted him to scale back the time that his son spent inside the clubhouse and later told him that he was no longer welcomed at the ballpark.

“Prior to signing with the White Sox, my first question to the club concerned my son’s ability to be a part of the team. After some due diligence on the club’s part, we reached an agreement. The 2015 season presented no problems as far as Drake was concerned. (My bat and our record are another story!)

With all of this in mind, we move toward the current situation which arose after White Sox VP Ken Williams recently advised me to significantly scale back the time that my son spent in the clubhouse. Later, I was told not to bring him to the ballpark at all. Obviously, I expressed my displeasure toward this decision to alter the agreement we had reached before I signed with the White Sox. Upon doing so, I had to make a decision. Do I choose my teammates and my career? Or do I choose my family? The decision was easy, but in no way was it a reflection of how I feel about my teammates, manager, general manager or the club’s owner Jerry Reinsdorf.

The White Sox organization is full of people with strong values and solid character. My decision to walk away was simply the result of a fundamental disagreement between myself and Ken Williams.”

The full statement can be found here.

Ken Williams does have a point though — the clubhouse is no place for kids. Having a kid in the clubhouse can be seen as a distraction, especially when the team is coming off a season with more losses than wins. This is still considered a workplace, and the players should be focused on work when they are at the ballpark.

Adam LaRoche2Adam’s situation is different than most of ours. Playing baseball can be tough on a family. The Major League Baseball season consists of 162 games for each team spanning over a 6 month period. About half of those games are played away. There have been many players that have paid for their families to travel to the same city in which the team was playing. Many of the players make millions which allow them to easily pay for the family to travel.

LaRoche has performed well in his career, and has earned more than $50 million. Walking away from $13 million can’t be easy, but Adam showed that placing your family first should always be an easy decision. Adam can now spend more time with his son and family without worrying about disrupting the players or the organization.

But this isn’t a story of right and wrong. The White Sox made a decision that was best for the organization, and Adam LaRoche made a decision that he feels is best for his family. We don’t have to agree with the decision that Adam made, but we should respect it.

MDavidScott

Chick-Fil-A Helps People Put Down the Phone While Eating

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Chick-Fil-A Family Challenge

Chick-Fil-A has introduced a new family challenge for customers. If you will agree to place your phones in a “Cell Phone Coop” while you eat, then every person that participates will receive a free ice cream cone.

In my opinion, Chick-Fil-A is the leader in customer service as they continue to provide an excellent customer experience. The restaurant is almost guaranteed to be crowded at lunchtime, but they move through a drive-thru line with haste, especially those with double drive-thru lines. The employees are some of the friendliest employees in fast-food, and they set the standard for how fast food workers should treat the customer. The restaurant is always clean (I try stopping here for bathroom breaks on trips), orders are usually accurate, the food is delicious, and they promote family nights.

I love that they are trying to help people enjoy their dinner with each other instead of staring into a phone. There has been numerous times that we have been out to eat and see other people spending more time on their phones than with each other. Couples are staring at their phones instead of staring at their partner, parents are ignoring their kids because they are checking their phones, and kids, yes young kids, are in a trance as they play with their tablets. What happened to kids wanting to spend time in the play area??

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The Chick-Fil-A Family Challenge. Photos Courtesy of Chick-Fil-A.

Jenny Radesky, a developmental pediatrician at the Boston Medical Center, studied parent-child interaction at fast-food restaurant. Her study found that more than 70% of adults used their cell phone during the meal.

Radesky said face-to-face interactions are the primary way children learn. “They learn by watching us how to have a conversation, how to read other people’s facial expressions. And if that’s not happening, children are missing out on important development milestones,” she said.

Maybe the noise is a factor for you — videos and games being played loudly, the girl snap-chatting every moment of her dinner, the guy talking on the phone so loud that everyone in the restaurant can hear, and those numerous selfies being taken.

According to a study conducted by Baylor University, cell phones can damage relationships and lead to depression. The study was used to learn about the effects of “Phubbing”or partner phone snubbing, which is described in the study as people that are distracted by their cell phones while in the company of their partner.

The results showed that almost 47% of respondents reported being pphubbed by their partner, and 22% of those people said it caused conflict in their relationship. Just under 40% reported feeling depressed some of the time.

Even though I think the family challenge is a wonderful idea, it still saddens me that we have reached this point. Technology is a great thing, and has helped us positively move forward in so many ways, but there are always a few drawbacks. When I was young it wasn’t “cool” to meet someone online, now everyone is just trying to swipe right. I’m not saying it is bad that we spend time on our phones, but I hope we don’t lose our ability to connect with others in person.

Put down the phone, and enjoy dinner with your family. It could potentially lead to a better relationship and a happier life.

The challenge is not currently being offered at all locations, but can be found at more than 150 restaurants.

MDavidScott