Happy Birthday!

I started writing online in 2008, before I had any kids. I would share a ton of my life, my weight loss, and my past.

My son was born in 2009 and my daughter was born in 2013. And as the years go on, I truly feel like sharing less and less about myself online. There truly is no benefit to talk about some of the things I did before. And I am very protective of my kids, especially online. That is why I rarely talk about my daughter.

Today is her birthday. She is an awesome, amazing child. I remember the day she was born and how happy I was. And to see hew grow up into the person that she is. Great student, loves to read, plays music, dances, and loves animals. Just a great kid overall.

Growing up, birthdays were the sacred holiday. The “holidays” were always meh. But birthdays…oh that was the big day. If you wanted a big gift or something fun, birthdays were the time to ask for it.

I remember my parents making a rule to never be mean on birthdays, no matter what. As a crappy kid at times, I challenged this rule. It did not work. They stuck to it. So I continue this rule.

So far, my daughter is having an amazing birthday and I do not see that changing anytime today. It took a lot to get to this moment. If you have read my Substack, you are aware that my life has been in a downward spiral since 2018, but over the last few months, it has changed. I am a happier and better person because of all of it. Through struggle comes reward. And today, seeing my daughter truly happy on her birthday is the reward.

So I wish her a very happy birthday. She deserves it and in a way, so do I.

Thank you for reading. I am going to post more and more and going to have one paywall post a week talking more personal and more controversial. If you are interested in a paid subscription that would be great! If not, you can still enjoy “Tony” and more unfiltered than on other sites. And if you like what I do here and want to support, you can always buy me a coffee here. Thank you.