Our 731st Dad in the Limelight is Luke Pieczynski of Lunch Note Sketch. I want to thank Luke Pieczynski for being a part of this series. It has been great getting connected with him and now sharing Luke Pieczynski 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 Luke Pieczynski and I am the creator of Lunch Note Sketch. I am a father of three wonderful children under the age of 6, and loving husband to my beautiful wife. I currently work in the design field supporting a team of very talented User Interface Designers. I am a big fan of sticky notes and have been writing messages to my wife on them for years. More recently, I started putting fun, inspirational sticky note sketches in my kids’ lunches and have created at least one note every day for the past 600 days. I started LunchNoteSketch.com to share creations, blog about life as a father, and give me an outlet to talk about how creativity can benefit everyone. My interactions with people around the globe have provided an incredible and memorable experience, and the support for this little side project has been amazing.
2) Tell me about your family
We are a family of 5 currently living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. My wife and I make a great team when trying to wrangle our 3 young kids. My daughters and son are full of life and make me feel young again with their love of art, animals, princesses, and cars.
3) What has been the largest challenge you have had in being a father?
There are a lot of little challenges I face as a father each day, but I don’t think any one of them outweighs another at this point. It’s just a matter of dealing with each challenge that comes my way and moving forward. If at the end of each day I can say we’re a little better off than we were yesterday, or at least tried to make it a little better, then I feel like I was successful. There are days where I think we could have done more, but I try to change my mindset to focus on what I can do to improve tomorrow and not focus on the negative.
4) What advice would you give to other fathers?
My advice to other fathers is to simply do something nice for your kids each day. If you have very young children, take the time to read an extra book with them, or spend an extra 5 minutes cuddling before bedtime. If you have young school-aged children, take 5 minutes to draw them a quick picture on a note and put it in their lunches. I have personally seen the impact that my lunch notes have had on my children and the effects have been amazing. Anything that makes them feel special will make you feel special.
5) How have you come to balance parenthood and outside life?
I am lucky to have an amazing partner who makes sure I get a chance to get out. We have a mutual agreement where we both will get at least one night out per week while the other takes care of the kids. I use my time to play volleyball and she uses her time to go to the gym. We also do our best to go on dates every other week or so. In that case, we rely on family and friends to take care of our children.
6) What have you learned from the fathers that you have interacted with?
I’ve learned to laugh more and stress less. As fathers, we will make a ton of mistakes, whether you’re a new dad or you have 10 kids. Every child is different, every circumstance is different, and I’m always learning and making mistakes. After talking with other fathers I found that if you are able to laugh at yourself and/or the situation, you will be better off for it.
7) What else would you share regarding your experiences as a father thus far? What have been the most memorable experiences that you have had thus far as a parent?
My most memorable experiences, besides the actual birth of each child, are the ones where I get to see my children experience new things. The best example was when I had the privilege of taking my daughter to NYC for a weekend before her 5th birthday. Now, you have to understand that at the time we were living in a small Virginia town where the tallest building was 5 stories. So imagine her face when she saw the scale of the buildings in a major city like New York. She had a constant look of amazement and excitement while we spent a couple days exploring downtown Manhattan. While she was taking in the sites, sounds, and shows of NYC, I was just watching her reactions to each new experience. I had such a feeling of joy and overwhelming pride that my heart smiled for weeks after the trip—and continues to smile when I reminisce.
If you have any questions for Luke Pieczynski, please leave a comment here and I will make sure that he gets them so that he may be able to respond!
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