Aveeno Men's Products

It's tough for any dad to admit he's not perfect. Most of us grow up with visions of our own father's being Superman, possessing no ill character traits. A beacon of all that's great. I'll admit it, I have one flaw. Only one. I am very unsuccessful when it comes to growing a well manufactured beard. 

I give you the Cliff Clavin Syndrome. (Cliff Clavin? You ask?) 

There was an episode of Cheers where they all grew beards, and Cliff embarrassingly had some empty terrain. (I'm sure it's on the internets somewhere. Everything is on the internets.)  Much like Boston's favorite mailman, I have two small patches of scorched earth that cramp what would be a rather rad red haired chin cap. This means keeping a clean shave is ever important, as the patches tend to disfigure my otherwise stunning look.

I recently tested Aveeno's new line of men's care products. Included in that line are a facial wash, shaving cream, and after shave lotion. (Did I mention I also have sensitive skin? Yeah, I don't fend rashes off very easily, especially when it comes to shaving.)

Holden at Knight-thon

Life has been a bit hectic on our end, so we apologize for not updating this sooner. Plenty of Holden updates coming. Promise.

In April Holden was invited to be a guest at Knight-thon, a grueling 18 hour dance marathon put on by students at the University of Central Florida.

These students dance for 18 straight hours with only small breaks to prevent the total shutdown of their central nervous systems. The event also took place on a Saturday/Sunday, meaning these students were also willing to sacrifice an optimal, late semester weekend in the name of the Greater Orlando Children's Miracle Network.

After sharing his story, and doing his own on stage dancing, we were greeted by three groups of students who had fund-raised and were dancing in Holden's name. Decked in Mickey Mouse paraphernalia (Holden's favorite) and sweaty from a few hours of stomping, everyone shared their amazing personal fundraising stories. We were floored with the lengths that these students went through, and most of them were meeting Holden for the first time. Just unbelievable.

Thank you to the UCF President's Leadership Council, Beta Theta Pi, and Delta Sigma Phi for all the awesome gifts and for your support. It really made Holden's day and your fundraising made the day for thousands of kids who will benefit from the proceeds.

In all, the Knight-thon raised $258,554.17 for the Greater Orlando Children's Miracle Network. Pretty amazing stuff. Check out the pictures below!

Congrats to Strong Films

We'll have a Heart Month wrap-up on here soon, but we wanted to take a minute to recognize everyone at Strong Films. In November of 2011 Mike Schmidt from Arnold Palmer Hospital reached out to us, asking if we'd allow Holden's story to become the feature of a short for the hospital. We agreed, and Mike immediately set up a meeting with the film's director, Jon.

On a wet November Saturday, a beard friendly Jon Strong came skipping into our driveway on the back of a Vespa. For an hour, he threw a calliope of questions our way. Filming began in January of 2012. Holden's surgery wasn't part of the original plan. If you'll recall, Holden's first surgery was scheduled for a Friday. We found out he'd be going under the knife two days before that. Jon was supposed to meet us that weekend to film various auxiliary scenes for the film. I called him Thursday cancelling, explaining why I had to delay his work. He paused and asked, "If I can get permission, do you mind if I film the surgery?" I didn't really pause all that long, "Sure, why not?" I won't lie, my focus wasn't on Jon's question. I was so windblown blown the surgery, he probably could have tricked me into signing the deed to my house over to him at that time. Jon text me that night saying he was still waiting to hear from the doctor.

I didn't hear from him again until the next morning. And when I say morning I mean like 5 AM, riding to the hospital, chugging coffee to fight anxiety. Jon had beaten us to the hospital, and was ready to film. We arrived, met Jon and his friend Chris and they started filming immediately.

We really don't remember the cameras. The perfect cocktail of anxiety, a complete lack of sleep, and caffeine will do that to you.The Tin Man was released on March 31, 2012.

When Jon described his vision of the film to us, we had no clue it would come out the way did. To say it exceeded our expectations is an understatement. In many ways Jon gave us a totally new point of view on our own story. I know other people felt the same way.

In November The Tin Man won a marketing award for Arnold Palmer Hospital. A few weeks ago it netted Strong Films the prestigious "Best in Show" at the Orlando ADDY Awards.

Congratulations to Strong Films, your hard work has paid off, and will continue to reward you. Thank you for letting us be a part of your success.

Heart Ball - 2013

We were proud to be invited to the American Heart Association's Heart Ball last night. Holden hammed it up enough to make his appearance known. We gave him the ol' Serge A. Storms look for "Safari Night" too. Special Thanks to everyone at the American Heart Association for their continued work in the CHD community.

We're growing! 

What I Wish I’d Known When My Son was Diagnosed with a Congenital Heart Defect

Trey was invited to write a blog post for Arnold Palmer Hospital highlighting some of the questions we had when learning about Holden's CHD. Please check it out!

Trey's Illuminate Blog Link

Illuminate Blog » What I wish I’d known when my son was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect

Holden and the family on Fox 35 for Valentine's Day

We were invited to be on Fox 35 with other families in Orlando to share our stories about Holden's surgeon Dr. William DeCampli. Check it out!

Orlando Chili Cook-Off

February 7th is the start of Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week! Join us for the Orlando Chili Cook-Off next Saturday at Festival Park by the Executive Airport. We'll be slinging some of the finest chili on earth in the name of Congenital Heart Defect Awareness.

DETAILS:

Date: February 9, 2013
Time: Noon - 6PM (Warning: Chili runs out quick. The earlier the better)
Location: Festival Park, Downtown Orlando (Milk District)
Tickets: $7 if you buy early at OrlandoChiliCookoff.com

Any questions? Comments? Let us know!