RAYMO’S RAMBLINGS – FATHERHOOD BEGINS IN THE DELIVERY ROOM

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FATHERHOOD BEGINS IN THE DELIVERY ROOM

I was in the delivery room at Johnson Memorial Hospital in Dawson on June 30th 1977, two nurses were attending to me on both sides, trying to hold me up and kept asking me if I am going to be ok. Dr. Maus would occasionally look at me and ask “you OK Paul?” I was sweating and crying, I was a big mess!  You see at 10:32pm on Thursday June 30th 1977 I became a father for the first time. I was so overcome with emotions, that I could hardly function in that delivery room. But I did make it through the birthing process which wasn’t easy for me. I was completely exhausted after that ordeal. And oh, my wife Roxie was in the delivery room too and she did just fine.

They can teach you many things in the baby classes that we took, but nothing can prepare you for what you actually go through giving birth. Watching my wife give birth for the first time was hard.  I felt so sorry for her, in the 70’s they didn’t use many drugs to relieve the pain of childbirth like they do now. There was a lot of screaming going on! My daughter in law recently gave birth and I asked her how it went giving birth, and she said “Oh, I felt a little pressure when he came out” OMG!

The reason I was having so much trouble in the delivery room is I thought for sure she was going to die!! And all I could think of was…..that I’m responsible for her having to go through this agony.

But you know, they say when you first see that baby and get to hold him, all the pain of childbirth is gone. It’s just pure joy and excitement, and that is so true.

Anyways, back to fatherhood. I became a father for the first time that day, and since then, I paid two more visits to the delivery room and a visit to the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport to have another child. The airport pickup was a lot less painful, but just as emotional. When the adoptive social worker placed out daughter in our arms at the airport off the plane from Korea, it was the same feeling as being in the hospital delivery room.

 I love being a father. Sure I could have done a better job at being a father, and maybe been around more in the earlier days, but do you know what I’m most proud of as a father? That my three boys, Josh, Jeremy, and Brandon have become fathers themselves and are awesome dads! All three of them do a super job at being a father. I enjoy watching them interact with their own children and to see how much they love them. I see my boys spending more time with their kids, then I did with them. One of my all-time favorite quotes is this. “The most important thing a father can do for his kids, is to love their mother” and I sure see that evidence in my sons as well.  So I must have done something right, and that is what I’m most proud of as a father.

So on this Father’s Day, we honor the Fathers.

Posted: June 18, 2017
Under: Raymo's Ramblings
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RAYMO’S RAMBLINGS – FATHERHOOD BEGINS IN THE DELIVERY ROOM

9679-2

FATHERHOOD BEGINS IN THE DELIVERY ROOM

I was in the delivery room at Johnson Memorial Hospital in Dawson on June 30th 1977, two nurses were attending to me on both sides, trying to hold me up and kept asking me if I am going to be ok. Dr. Maus would occasionally look at me and ask “you OK Paul?” I was sweating and crying, I was a big mess!  You see at 10:32pm on Thursday June 30th 1977 I became a father for the first time. I was so overcome with emotions, that I could hardly function in that delivery room. But I did make it through the birthing process which wasn’t easy for me. I was completely exhausted after that ordeal. And oh, my wife Roxie was in the delivery room too and she did just fine.

They can teach you many things in the baby classes that we took, but nothing can prepare you for what you actually go through giving birth. Watching my wife give birth for the first time was hard.  I felt so sorry for her, in the 70’s they didn’t use many drugs to relieve the pain of childbirth like they do now. There was a lot of screaming going on! My daughter in law recently gave birth and I asked her how it went giving birth, and she said “Oh, I felt a little pressure when he came out” OMG!

The reason I was having so much trouble in the delivery room is I thought for sure she was going to die!! And all I could think of was…..that I’m responsible for her having to go through this agony.

But you know, they say when you first see that baby and get to hold him, all the pain of childbirth is gone. It’s just pure joy and excitement, and that is so true.

Anyways, back to fatherhood. I became a father for the first time that day, and since then, I paid two more visits to the delivery room and a visit to the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport to have another child. The airport pickup was a lot less painful, but just as emotional. When the adoptive social worker placed out daughter in our arms at the airport off the plane from Korea, it was the same feeling as being in the hospital delivery room.

 I love being a father. Sure I could have done a better job at being a father, and maybe been around more in the earlier days, but do you know what I’m most proud of as a father? That my three boys, Josh, Jeremy, and Brandon have become fathers themselves and are awesome dads! All three of them do a super job at being a father. I enjoy watching them interact with their own children and to see how much they love them. I see my boys spending more time with their kids, then I did with them. One of my all-time favorite quotes is this. “The most important thing a father can do for his kids, is to love their mother” and I sure see that evidence in my sons as well.  So I must have done something right, and that is what I’m most proud of as a father.

So on this Father’s Day, we honor the Fathers.

Posted: June 17, 2017
Under: Raymo's Ramblings
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RAYMO’S RAMBLINGS – A NURSE THAT ROCKS!

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A NURSE THAT ROCKS!

This September I will be 60 years old. Just saying that out loud and typing it out, it doesn’t seem possible or real. I surely don’t feel 60 and I guess that is a good thing. I am a 20-year-old trapped in a 60-year-old body!! However, my body is showing signs that it is reaching 60 years old. I have never abused my body with drugs, smoking, or excessive alcohol use. But I have damaged it with food over the years, not eating healthy or just eating too much, along with other factors like a sedentary lifestyle for the most part have plugged my heart arteries.

So this past March for the second time in my life I had heart issues and had another stent put in at the St. Cloud Hospital. I thank God for modern technology and medicine, it is amazing what they can do.

 And again after the stent was put in, I have had to go through cardiac rehab at the Madison Hospital. It’s something I really don’t want to do or take the time to do, but know that it is necessary to do to be healthy. Three years ago when I got my first stent I quit cardiac rehab.

So this time my cardiac rehab nurse Marissa Stahl of the Madison Health Care Services and I have spent the last three months together in the rehab room, three times a week strengthening my heart and getting in shape and talking about how to be healthy. I must admit I really didn’t want to do this, and after the first couple of sessions wanted to quit. I wanted to quit because I didn’t want to take the time out of my schedule to do this. I’m too busy, I had more important things to do, I didn’t see the importance of it, I thought it a waste of time. Excuses excuses!

But I thank Marissa for encouraging me, and working with me and really just giving me an ear to listen to my struggles when it comes to trying to lose weight and exercising. Most of you know me pretty well and I like to talk and during walking on the treadmill, or riding the (hated) bike or the elliptical seated bike I just talked her ear off, I think she needs a medal for just listening to me.

But each day I walked into the rehab room she always had a smile and a happy greeting for me. She made the hour or so with me interesting and fun, we would always watch the tv show The Chew, which I had never seen before cardiac rehab, it’s a show about food and cooking of all things, but it was fun to watch. As the days went along I always felt better walking out the door and I felt good about myself about what I was accomplishing.

When I finished my last session, Marissa had a small graduation ceremony for me, presenting me with a cardiac rehab t shirt, and a certificate of completion, but the best part was she took my picture, and I get it put up on the cardiac rehab graduation board with the others that graduated too. I might be the youngest one up on the board, youngest being just about 60!

I take that back, the best part of my graduation ceremony was getting a hug from Marissa and telling me that I did a great job! She’s a nurse that rocks!

Posted: June 14, 2017
Under: Raymo's Ramblings
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RAYMO’S RAMBLINGS HAIR PROBLEMS

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I’ve got hair problems! This is going to sound like a womanly blog, so i might be losing my man card. In one of my earlier blogs I wrote about my hair and how I am growing it out or wanting to grow it longer. I missed a haircut appointment and just never rescheduled it and my hair started to get real long, just like in high school and I thought it looked cool.  I received so many comments on that hair blog, it was unbelievable.  People are continuing to talk about it to me on the street, at ball games, and in restaurants when they see me and notice that my hair is long. Mostly the comments are 50/50, they hate it or love it. Personally I really like it……..my wife not so much! Even my own beautiful four year old granddaughter Gretta has turned on me, and keeps telling everyone I need a haircut because I’m looking like a girl!!

Then my younger brother Jim gets involved and is growing his hair out too and keeps posting pictures of his wild looking hair on Facebook and tagging me. I’ve posted some of his pictures for you to look at and decide who is crazier, him or me. But over the weekend he wimped out and had his wife cut his hair, or was it his wife who told him to sit down I’m cutting your hair?

Anyways my long hair is causing relationship problem/issues with my wife, adult kids, grandchildren, Coworkers and some friends. My daughter is getting married in October and her texts to me keep saying “cut the locks, you are not looking like that in the wedding picture” My wife agrees with her.

I did say the comments are 50/50, so many people have told me they really like it, mostly friends or acquaintances.  But here is the problem, the people that I love the most hate it. But if I’m happy with it, well then what do I do? Need some help from you readers, feel free to weigh in on this please.

Who would have guessed a simple blog could create so much turmoil, and over hair!! We have much bigger problems to deal with.

Posted: June 10, 2017
Under: Raymo's Ramblings
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RAYMO’S RAMBLINGS – I HAVE A FRIEND

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I HAVE A FRIEND

As most of you know I cover high school sports in the area for KLQP radio in Madison. With that job, I have come to know many people in the Q92 listening area over the years, coaches, players, parents, grandparents, AD’s and other school officials, janitors, ticket takers, concession stand workers, referee’s, and other media people covering the high school games.

I have talked with many newspaper people, and other radio sports broadcasters and I have gotten to be pretty good friends with most of the them. However, there is one guy I have become a very close friend with over the years and that is the Minneota Newspaper editor Byron Higgin. Byron turned 70 years young this past week, and I had the chance to stop in his office and wish him a happy birthday.

Byron is very much loved in Minneota, and as you might expect for a small town newspaper editor, Byron does everything! He not only covers Minneota sports, but he covers just about everything else that happens in Minneota, city council meetings, school board meetings, he writes his own column, actually two columns a week in his weekly newspaper. Byron has been in the newspaper business all his life, his father ran a newspaper in the small town of Cosmos and he learned the trade from him and others. Byron loves what he does, he has a passion for telling stories and putting them on paper. He is one gifted human being.

I always tell Byron he takes great pictures, he takes great pride in the pictures he puts in his newspaper, he told me he looks for the emotions in a picture and over the years he has captured many outstanding pictures that have won him many state wide awards.  Something unique about the Minneota Mascot is that most of the pictures are printed in color!

Byron and I actually got to know each other better at all the state tournaments that the Minneota high school teams have participated in over the last 8 years. We have spent a lot of time at Target Center, Williams Arena, the Excel Energy Center, Metrodome and TCF Bank Stadium just visiting and sharing stories. Creating great memories and celebrating together when Minneota has won state championships.

The best times with Byron however are over lunch when we talk about other things than sports, like our families, our faith, or our struggles that we both have with our weight, and just in general about enjoying life to the fullest. Both of us love telling stories and each time we are together we have so much fun just sharing events that have happened to us, or giving opinions on things. Most of all, we love to laugh and have a good time!! That is what friends do. And I thank God for a friend like Byron!

Posted: June 7, 2017
Under: Raymo's Ramblings, Sports
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