Our 752nd Dad in the Limelight is Technology Educator at St. Anne School, Eric Hartman. I want to thank Eric Hartman for being a part of this series. It has been great getting connected with him and now sharing Eric Hartman with all of you.
1) Tell me about yourself, (as well as how you are in the limelight for my readers knowledge)
My name is Eric Hartman and I was born and raised in Levittown, NY, and moved to California in June of 2006. I have one older sister, Teresa, who lives in San Clemente, and one younger sister, Roseann, who lives in Bayshore, NY. Currently, I live in Laguna Beach, and I am a technology teacher at St. Anne school, in Laguna Niguel, and I LOOOOOOOVE technology, ever since the first time I saw Captain Kirk open a communicator and Spock fire a phaser, on Star Trek. In my capacity as a tech educator, I teach media, coding, and 3-D printing, and love to give my students the opportunity to explore VR, augmented reality, holography, and drone technology, just to name a few.
2) Tell me about your family
My wife of 8 years, Tracy, and I have a 4 1/2 year old daughter, Piper (who we officially adopted in Feb. 2013) and a cat named Jupiter (Piper named him after a character on one of her favorite TV shows, Fireman Sam). Piper is in PreK, at St. Anne, and will be going into kindergarten next year (I have NO idea where the last 5 years went).
3) What has been the largest challenge you have had in being a father?
My biggest problem right now is not saying yes to everything and not sweating the small stuff (see question #4). Having a 4 1/2 year old is HARD! I think about how my parents raised me, and although I have had some difficulties, I am SO happy to be Piper’s dad and have the chance to raise her. In all honesty, I am the loud parent, and sometimes my voice gets the better of me, but with every day, I feel I am learning more and more. My daughter is a tech wiz, just like her dad, and she LOVES visiting the Apple and Microsoft stores to see what new toys they have. Plus, she enjoys super heroes, just like her father did as a kid. I really enjoy when she sits down with me to watch The Flash and asks me about the heroes and villains.
4) What advice would you give to other fathers?
My one piece of advice was given to me by my dad, and that’s “don’t sweat the small stuff”, which is a work in progress. Cherish every moment with your kids because, as cliché as it sounds, we NEVER know how much time we have, so you don’t want to miss a thing. I look forward to conversations on the ride home from school, or horsey rides (although they kill my back and knees), and having my daughter yelling “DADDY!” and running to me for a hug, when I pick her up from school each day.
5) How have you come to balance parenthood and outside life?
It is SO important to always make time for my family, although sometimes work gets in the way, I am fortunate that I have developed a system that allows me to give them the entire weekend without distraction, the majority of the time.
6) What have you learned from the fathers that you have interacted with?
Being a teacher gives me the opportunity to see how different dads parent, and I have known some phenomenal people throughout my career. My own dad was pretty laid back, and he I had some wonderful conversations, and he gave me solid advice, during episodes of Star Trek or while watching a NY Islanders game. Over the years I’ve been at St. Anne, the fathers I’ve known and looked up to were much like my own, and I have helped to support and nurture a few of my students who did not have a father in their life. I want to make sure to pass on Dad’s sage words to my own child, and make sure that she knows she is loved.
7) What else would you share regarding your experiences as a father thus far?
You’ve gotta be able to laugh at yourself. It’s something I always tell my students, and I truly believe that if you can laugh at the silly and ridiculous things that YOU do, you can accept anything. I know I’m not perfect, and I constantly strive to learn from my own mistakes, hoping my daughter will see that effort and do so herself. Also, share special moments with your child regularly. Once, I took my daughter on a “date” to Chik-fil-A, because it was Daddy/daughter night (Hawaiian theme). She LOVED it, and we had so much fun.
8) What have been the most memorable experiences that you have had thus far as a parent?
There are those “firsts” as a parent (first steps, first words, first time they recognize Batman, etc.), but that first time Piper called me “daddy” was my favorite. Then there was the first time she asked if she could come with me to the comic book shop, which lead to the first time she asked if she could get a comic book (she picked Spongebob). Finally, the first time my wife bought her to one of my hockey games, and she cheered for me when I had the puck. Ah, memories!
If you have any questions for Eric Hartman, please leave a comment here and I will make sure that he gets them so that he may be able to respond!
——————————————————————————————-
New to the Divadom?
Please Subscribe to my RSS Feed! Subscribe in a reader
Questions?Drop me a line at dadofdivas@gmail.com
The post Dads in the Limelight – Technology Educator at St. Anne School, Eric Hartman appeared first on Dad of Divas.