Newest Bearhawk pilot

[Zzz]

Meet Halley. 2 weeks old and she's already being put to sleep by the airplane.



I need a pep talk guys. Between parenting a newborn and some house remodel work, the BH sits neglected and despite knowing I'll get back to it soon, it's depressing. People say to do one thing a day on your project, but honestly finishing my bathroom remodel frees up garage space and gets me back in airplane project mode faster. Sigh.

I know Jared built an airplane with a baby wandering around. Good inspiration.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Chris In Milwaukee]

I'm with you! I've had remodeling work going on for the last two years, and it really gets in the way of building. Newborns also need a lot of care and attention, too! I say, giving your plane a look, a pat, and a kind word counts as progress. So have a seat, make airplane noises, and get Halley accustomed to the controls :-)

~Chris

[whee]

I feel your pain! Thought I'd get a ton of work done while my wife was on maternity leave but I was so wrong. Right now it isn't even in my garage...I feel like it got kicked out and abandoned. Before we moved it out Brooklyn and I spent many late nights sitting in the garage just looking at it.

[marcusofcotton]

Hi Halley!

Zane,of course the family is the correct priority. Major adjustment time for you folks. Focus on the bathroom remodel and get it done. You will find it difficult to resume when there are long lapses, some use notes on what is next whenever they leave it. 'Course mine's been a slow build, but I knew that going in, lots of life happenings.

This week I did find myself with nothing left to do on my wing skeletons. Now I'm in the process of major reorganizing and clean up of the shop so I can reconfigure it for skinning them (I did the table top method to this point).

[Battson]

Congratulations Zane!!!!

They grow up so fast

The Bearhawk can always wait for as long as you can, he won't wait for anyone! Every week there is a whole pile of milestones, they learn more each day than we adults do each year.
Get the balance right, and don't regret it!

Emily is 4 months now, a long while since she took her first Bearhawk flight:


The headset is really not flattering, more like fattening .....haha!

[Zzz]

Haha cute! Headset cheeks for sure.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Chewie]

First of all, whether you like it or not, congrats! ;-) regarding the project, I would recommend sleep training for Halley. You won't have a social life after 7pm, but hey it keeps you home and I'm assuming your project is too? Win win! Give it 4-6 months, but it's totally worth the effort. And everyone under your roof will be happier and better rested.

[N942VT]

Congratulations Zane, you're putting your family's needs first so don't feel bad about that. You could let that Bearhawk sit for five years and it won't resent you for it, you'll pick up right where you left off and it won't hold it against you. I bet once the bath is done you'll find time to get back at it, no worries.

[nichzimmerman]

Congrats! Now the REAL fun begins. I can commiserate a bit as we have a 6 month old and I am in school full time. My wife has been amazing at giving me some time in the evening for school, and I will not ask her to give me extra time for my scratch build. But I have determined to do one thing a day, and since I am the first one awake every morning I will usually go out to the garage and do a quick weld, cut out a fitting, or clean up a mess. Its all worth it when my 5 year old points to the fuselage skeleton and says "I want to fly in that when I am 8!" She keeps me motivated. If only she could buck rivets....


Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

[bearhawk2015]

Congratulations, we also had a baby during our build, the plane sat in the garage for a few months without getting worked on and then I slowly started working on it again, it eventually got finished and now that baby is 7 and has flown all over MN and WI with me in the bearhawk and he can fly the plane if I need to do something like eat or fold the map. The same goes for my other son, I plan adventures for the kids now using the airplane which is really fun

[Zzz]

Thanks everybody. BH2015 that's awesome!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jaredyates]

Congrats Zane! We finished our Bearhawk almost two years after the first kid came along. If you look at the dates in my building log you can see a staggering slowdown, especially in the first few months after she was born. Here are a few thoughts on that topic. First, I've learned to view the achievements of others in the context of their family relationships. For example, if someone is able to accomplish something really great in their lifetime, but has kids that hate them, then perhaps the achievement wasn't so great after all. To put it another way, if you were able to log 3 hours of bonus building time in lieu of showering for a week, have you really done something to be proud of? I've tried to think of litter time investment more as a responsibility than an optional hobby.

Another thought that comes to mind is a story from one of the airplane magazines a few years back about expectations of progress. The RV builder is trimming his canopy, and he is frustrated because it takes him two weeks and he thought he'd be able to get it done in one week. When he called the factory to order the next kit, he mentioned his frustration, and they said "Oh, it takes most people three weeks." Happiness is usually driven by expectations. Don't let your ambitious expectations get you down. You are the one who created those expectations for yourself, so you have the authority to modify them.

When you look back three or four years from now, the parts of your airplane that you are working on now will look much like they do now. You only have an infant for 9 months. You only have a toddler for two years. You only have a preschooler for two years. Each phase of the experience is an expiring good that you have to make use of before it is gone forever. In this phase, she's all input, but that will change soon. Before long, she'll be able to feed herself and poop in the potty. Then you can start teaching her about how a torque wrench works. That's not to say it is only going to get easier as they get older, but, I find that I'm much better equipped to deal with the challenges now than I was when I was in your shoes.

Finally, maintain focus on the key goal, which is to have an airplane that you can enjoy with your family. It won't do you any good to have the airplane if you teach the family to resent the airplane before it's finished.

[Zzz]

Too cute, Jared. I didn't see your post the first time. You're definitely an inspiration for those of us building with young children.

Here's an update with the midget. Almost 8 months old.

[Battson]

Those are really good hats for kids. We have that one also, thanks to Mark and Cathy!

[jaredyates]

Fantastic! Are you bringing her to Oshkosh this time? I suspect you didn't see my reply back then because you were doing that whole new dad thing, being awake all night and such.

[mswain]

Love the kid pics. Here is my little man sitting in Jared's Bearhawk at Triple Tree last year.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mswain]

Congrats Zane! We finished our Bearhawk almost two years after the first kid came along. If you look at the dates in my building log you can see a staggering slowdown, especially in the first few months after she was born. Here are a few thoughts on that topic. First, I've learned to view the achievements of others in the context of their family relationships. For example, if someone is able to accomplish something really great in their lifetime, but has kids that hate them, then perhaps the achievement wasn't so great after all. To put it another way, if you were able to log 3 hours of bonus building time in lieu of showering for a week, have you really done something to be proud of? I've tried to think of litter time investment more as a responsibility than an optional hobby.

Another thought that comes to mind is a story from one of the airplane magazines a few years back about expectations of progress. The RV builder is trimming his canopy, and he is frustrated because it takes him two weeks and he thought he'd be able to get it done in one week. When he called the factory to order the next kit, he mentioned his frustration, and they said "Oh, it takes most people three weeks." Happiness is usually driven by expectations. Don't let your ambitious expectations get you down. You are the one who created those expectations for yourself, so you have the authority to modify them.

When you look back three or four years from now, the parts of your airplane that you are working on now will look much like they do now. You only have an infant for 9 months. You only have a toddler for two years. You only have a preschooler for two years. Each phase of the experience is an expiring good that you have to make use of before it is gone forever. In this phase, she's all input, but that will change soon. Before long, she'll be able to feed herself and poop in the potty. Then you can start teaching her about how a torque wrench works. That's not to say it is only going to get easier as they get older, but, I find that I'm much better equipped to deal with the challenges now than I was when I was in your shoes.

Finally, maintain focus on the key goal, which is to have an airplane that you can enjoy with your family. It won't do you any good to have the airplane if you teach the family to resent the airplane before it's finished.

Very well said Jared!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk