MY LIFE – PT. 4 (HONEY - I SHRUNK THE KIDS!)

I know, I know I was supposed to talk about my Ned Flanders years and then my transformation at Forefront; but…, change of plans! It dawned on me that I had not given our children adequate air time and I would be remiss in not mentioning them! Hence, “Honey – I Shrunk the Kids!”

While stationed in Philadelphia, Pa. in the shipyard, my wife Karen was pregnant. We initially lived in Delran, NJ while stationed there and then moved into base housing about 3 months later. We had already started seeing a doctor in Willingboro, NJ and decided to stick with him for the birth of our first child.

Chad Ryan Merritt was born on the 12th of October 1980, ironically the same day the Phillies won the pennant and later went on to win the World Series that year! Guess which team he currently roots for? (LOL!) A couple of years later while stationed with the Navy in Patuxent River, MD., Karen gave birth to our son Sean W. Merritt on the 5th of June 1983. A little more than a year later she gave birth to Megan Elaine Merritt on the 28th of August 1984.

These three gems have been the bearers of some of the most memorable days of my life and unfortunately some of the worst. As in each family, every child has a unique personality that adds to the blend and mix of family life. The one challenge I had personally as a father, was that I had no real role model to follow. So.., for the first 10 years I literally did things from my gut and instinct. Things changed drastically when God entered the scene, but that created a whole other set of problems from a parenting perspective.

The other challenge was this – I wanted to break “The Merritt Legacy”. This was one of the goals in my life and thus far, it has panned out. Our marriage is the ONLY marriage to last in my entire blood line for as far back as I can go. Our son’s, and now myself are the first in our bloodline ever to hold a Bachelors Degree. So, although I made quite a few mistakes along the way – I can look back on some of this with a sense of pride but also humility; because, I know I could have never done it without God and Karen by my side.

Each of the kids was gifted with athletic ability and good smarts. All three excelled in sports beyond my wildest dreams. Chad and Sean were both phenoms in Football and Megan excelled in Softball and basketball. Chad was also gifted in baseball and Sean was a great wrestler. Those were some fun years running around from game to game, and coaching many of them too!

I mentioned the worst day of my life, and I am speaking of our daughter Megan. She went home to be with the Lord on Easter Sunday morning the 15th of April 2001. Thank God she knew Jesus as Lord and we know that we will see her “Back at the House” again one day; but next time it will be forever. Lot’s of cool/funny stories about how we have remembered her in the last 7 years.

Both boys are doing very well for themselves and are graduates of James Madison University (Go Dukes!) and settling in very nicely to their adult lives. We are very proud of them both and are “thankful” to God everyday for the gift of them.

Ok.., tomorrow I’ll fill ya in on the “Christian” years and my journey at Forefront Church in Virginia Beach. Until then – Yo! Get your hands off of them Krispy Kremes man!