My dad is a kind of person you don't meet every day.
-It's very hard to make him mad at you.
I'm nominating my dad for Queer Eye because his...
his lifestyle's a little...
unpredictable.
Our hero this week, his name is John Stoner.
-I love his name!
Got some shedding going on.
John is 38, and he is 6 foot 5.
I call my dad a man-child.
This might be my favorite nominator of all time.
Hands up.
His ten-year-old daughter, Lucy, nominated him, you guys.
-All right. Thank you, Lucy. - Sweet.
My life at my dad's house...
...is quite an adventure.
-Twirl. Oops.
Lucy's like my little best friend. We just do everything together.
I feel like everything in my life is better if I have Lucy with me.
John has a corporate job as a healthcare consultant,
where he primarily works from his living room sofa.
- Okay. -I love a work remote.
John is divorced. He's a single dad who co-parents Lucy
-with his ex-wife, Julie. -Okay.
Julie and John still have a great relationship. I love to hear that.
And even work together.
But they live and parent very differently.
All right. Let's go.
Lucy wakes herself up and makes breakfast, while John sleeps in.
No!
Dad!
My dad is not a morning person, so I'm the one who has to wake him up.
Dad, wake up.
And make sure he gets dressed.
And almost act like a parent to my own parent.
That's a little much.
I love the way that she's being proactive, and she's cooking on her own.
I'm curious to see what she likes to make.
My dad's health is not good.
I know he's been trying to be healthier.
Just sometimes I feel like he should really get out of bed,
go on more runs and walks.
I think my clothes are pretty wild. I like fun patterns and things.
Like this one's got pizzas. I like-- I like pizza.
Oh, a pizza shirt? Okay.
I don't really enjoy his fashion sense.
John is a die-hard sports fan.
He's actually a super fan known locally as Cat Suit Guy.
Cat Suit Guy.
He's gained notoriety after wearing crazy cat suit onesies
to all professional sports games.
-Yeah. Uh-huh. -Oh, my gosh.
Everybody recognizes him as the Cat Suit Man.
-Oh, Jonathan. -What?
-Brace yo'self. Brace yo'self. -Oh...
Lucy has a big figure skating competition this week.
-Shut up! -No!
It's your dream come true, Jonny!
He likes basketball, he likes football, he likes baseball.
But I'm not quite sure what he thinks about ice skating.
Getting all dressed up and then the tears.
And the throwing stuffed animals on the ice after.
Some of that I don't understand.
She's competing in an individual free skate for the first time.
She's beyond excited to have her dad show up to support her
like the other skate parents.
At the end of this week, I am skating at Fall Fling,
which is one of the biggest competitions for me.
Toe spring.
I think I'm gonna sit that one out.
So, our mission this week, it's for Lucy.
Let's turn Cat Suit Guy
into the apple of her eye!
- Aw! - I know!
-This guy's adorable. -That's so sweet.
- Guys, he's got a big house. - It is gigantic.
-Wow. -Let's do it.
Oh, you're getting so many treats today.
-Gonna give me a yes, yes, yeah, yeah. -How are we supposed to--?
There's no gate.
-There are holes. - No landscaping, either.
-Are you gonna landscape? -Uh, maybe.
-Hello. -She's letting us in.
It is the Fab 5.
Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh!
-That is ridiculous. I love it. -Thank you.
-Why are you wet? - Oh, my gosh!
Oh, my gosh! I see it!
Is that a corgi?
Oh, my gosh!
No one told me that there was gonna be a corgi.
Hi, I'm Tan. Nice to meet you. How are you?
His little baby paws,
they smell like Pup-Peroni.
This house is... freaking amazing.
- Are these beer cans? - Yes.
- Is this a frat house? - An old man frat house, maybe.
Okay. Got it.
Decor based on sporting events and how much beer you've consumed,
that's not decor.
-What's up, Oscar?
-Hi! -Hi.
- You must be Lucy.
How are you?
-Hi. I'm Julie. -Hi, Julie. Nice to meet you.
Hello. Nice to meet you.
Figure skating champion on her way, 2022. Watch out.
Lucy, first of all, congratulations.
You are the youngest person who ever nominated somebody before.
-Yay! - I know.
Does your dad ever wear the famous cat suit
to the figure skating competition?
-Thank God, no. -Oh, yeah.
He understands boundaries. That's good.
He has to look good in the picture after I skate.
- Aw! - Yeah.
Do you have a full closet of cat onesies?
-Where can we find these? - Show us cat onesies.
Show you the cat onesies. Okay, then.
Let's-- There they are. Let's see here. Yes.
- Oh! -Oh!
I'm gonna have to take a few of these.
I don't think you're gonna need these anymore.
If you see it on my Instagram, don't come for me.
Thank you. It was nice to meet you. Okay, bye.
Oh, I just want scritchy scratchies.
Scritchy scratchies. Yeah.
Tell me what you like to wear.
Tell me what your favorite things are in this closet.
-There's a lot going on. -Yeah. I usually, uh--
-I wear a lot of flannels. -Okay.
I like those. Uh, I'm glad that season's coming.
-I don't like the hot weather. -Yeah?
-It's got Big and Tall stuff... -It fits like a glove.
I've been so hoping you were gonna put it on.
- I have never looked... -That looks tremendous.
Looking fine and feeling gorgeous.
-Cute, though, right? - Really cute.
Yeah, thanks, Jonathan. You look gorg.
Now kitty that walk.
Talk to me about this suit.
Oh, I love that suit.
-I like the interior on it. Yeah. - Uh-huh.
Okay. On the inside,
-it's all topless women. - Yes.
I know this probably cost a lot.
Is this your only custom suit in your closet?
- Yes. -Okay.
The worrying thing is you chose the only custom thing in your wardrobe
-to do that to it. - Yeah.
Normally, I'm the one who's saying,
"Play more." Like, use a print. Show your personality.
But this...
is a lot.
I think we need to find something in the middle
that is age-appropriate, that's mature, that's still fun.
I love that you love color. You clearly have no issue with color.
I wanna go for that, and I wanna encourage you to dress
more like that as opposed to the--
-The teenager, the college kid. -Okay.
We have beer. We have a lot of condiments.
A lot of cheesy slices.
Do you like cheesy slices?
Tell me, like, a gorgeous morning in the life of John Stoner.
I come in here and I brush my teeth,
do a little combing of my hair.
If I'm going to work or somewhere fancy,
I'll get it wet and put some stuff in it.
Tell me about your hair. You have really pretty waves.
Oh, thank you. And, uh, it's kind of getting a little sunburned on top lately.
-I see what you're saying. -Yeah.
There are some ways that we could wear it,
style it a little differently that could kind of
-give us a more of illusion of fullness. -Thank you.
We've some good ear hair going on here.
-Uh-oh. -Okay.
Dear sweet Lucy, what are some of your favorite things to make here?
Um, a lot of the time I like to make breakfast.
Ok, what do you like making for breakfast?
Um, eggs...
What else do you make for breakfast that you like?
If you bake, do you like any sweets?
I love sweets.
You have a sweet tooth?
I noticed. I found icing in three different spots in this kitchen.
So, who taught you how to bake?
-Uh, mainly my mom. -Okay.
I'm gonna talk about him like he's not here,
I feel like we need to get him into the kitchen with you a bit.
I agree.
I've got my outfit. Do you like?
-That slays. - It slays. All right.
Slays all day.
Oh, your paws smell so nice.
We gotta get Dad, like,
hip to being the biggest super fan ever 'cause we wanna be able to bond
-and talk to him about it a little bit. -Yep.
'Cause, you know, if you were a baseball player
or a softball player, whatever,
-he would know, like, what a strikeout is. -Mm-hm.
So, I'm gonna get him up to snuff on all things...
-figure skating. -Yep.
Why is it important for yourself
to make some improvements?
Well, I've seen, even like my health, I'm going to the doctor more.
Getting bad reports and everything. So, uh, my fast food,
uh, staying up too late, you know, a lot of those things,
kind of need to change.
I wanna be there for Lucy, uh, longer in life than the--
probably the trajectory I'm on currently.
-Yeah. -I think I grew up kind of fast.
Get engaged, married and have a kid, get a house.
It's like, I feel like I was just following a script on life.
And then once it kind of all broke down,
then it was time to just be a degenerate a little bit and, uh,
not work so hard to be moving forward.
It's been fun, but it's probably time to maybe look at a treadmill.
I don't know if I'm ready to step on it yet, but I might...
-...stare at something like that.
Do you know who the 1992 Olympic champion was for women?
-Who was it? -Her name was Kristi Yamaguchi.
She's American. She's very amazing.
-Do you know who won the '94? -Who?
Oksana Baiul.
We're gonna go through
-serious YouTube videos together, queen. -Okay.
What's something you wanna see from him? Like, "God, I hope that they: blank."
Can you wave a magic wand and make him grow up?
Do you feel like he's a bit of, like, arrested development Peter Pan-ish?
Yeah. He's there. He takes care of her. She's safe.
He loves her more than anyone in the world.
-Right. -Um, but it's some of the things, like,
make her lunch to take to school
-and be at skating practice. -Yeah, like these simple...
-And be at competition. -...quote-unquote, givens and things
that a lot of people take for granted, but that should be kind of a given thing
-when you're a parent, right? -Yeah. Yeah.
The dads do a breakfast every year.
-Okay. -So, they host a breakfast
for all of the skaters...
-Okay. -...one Sunday morning every year.
That's cute. And what do they make?
So, like, pancakes, and eggs,
and French toast, cinnamon rolls.
-She loves breakfast food. -All that stuff. Yeah.
And he doesn't go. He's never been.
-He's never been? -Never been.
Seems like you're at a space right now where you're like,
-"Well, maybe some things can change." -Yeah.
But you don't really know what those things fully are.
Yeah. The consequences are starting to show up, so...
I appreciate you being open with this, man.
Yeah.
What is this room?
This-- This room is where I just kind of put things I don't know where they go.
-Okay. -To be honest.
The thing is, though, it doesn't look very utilized to me.
Yeah. We have a lot of space, and, uh,
if I don't have a plan, I just kind of throw--
Like, "If I put things here, I don't have to deal with them."
-You work from home. -Yeah.
So where do-- Where's your space that you work?
-I work in here usually. -Okay.
I sit on this couch and use that coffee table.
-All right. So, work and hang out here. -Yeah.
I don't see...
a ten-year-old girl yet in this house anywhere.
No. Not in this one. Not in this room.
-All right. So, show me her room now. -Okay.
Walk me through a day of Lucy getting up, getting ready.
Uh, well, I sleep through most of that, but she gets up.
She has all of her alarms set.
Gets her hair done and everything,
makes her breakfast and goes to watch TV for 30 minutes or so.
And then she'll, you know, "Dad, let's go."
And then I jump up, put on my pajamas, and we run to school.
-Might as well get her a Lyft account. -I've tried.
Oh, yeah. Her Mom shot that down.
-She said-- -John-- No.
I was just teasing.
I'm excited. We all know exactly what we wanna do to help you this week.
-I think so. Yeah. -And we're confident of it.
I think that the shared goal here, the common goal here
is to make sure that
you and Lucy sync up more,
and that you guys are doing things together.
I mean, it'd be sad to miss out on opportunities to really do stuff for her.
So, if you're ready to get started, we're ready to get started.
-I'm ready. - All right. Let's do this.
Ooh, ooh, ooh, yeah!
I want Lucy to feel like she's fully-supported
in everything that she does.
Lucy needs to have some memories when she's at her dad's house
of him preparing a meal for her
and them sharing that together.
My plan is to give Lucy her own space in the home.
So she doesn't just feel like she's just at Dad's.
She feels like she's at home with Dad.
The wardrobe is a concern. I do love that he's playful,
I do love that he's fun. But does that need be your whole closet? No.
I want to find a happy medium.
I know that the passion of Cat Suit Guy exists within John.
I just need to redirect that gorgeous internal passion,
and show John what to look for, so that he can be
as obsessed with figure skating as he is with every other sport.
I can tell that John truly loves Lucy.
It radiates from him.
But there's a disconnect of why he's not truly showing up for her
in the way he needs to.
There's something going on up here and in here
that we still gotta get to the core of.
-Have you been here before? -Yeah, I've been a couple times.
-It's a really great spot. -Yeah, it is.
Lucy mentioned that she loves breakfast,
so I thought it would be super adorable if you made breakfast for her.
We're gonna be making almond flour pancakes
instead of your traditional flour pancakes.
They are higher in protein,
lower in carb, but still really nice. And then we have to figure out
-what we're gonna put on them. -Okay.
What direction you wanna go with fruit?
Oh, man. I think the apples and the cinnamon would be good.
-Apples and cinnamon? Awesome. -Yeah.
Pancakes, as you know,
- you've made pancakes before. -Nope.
-You've never made pancakes before? -I haven't made a pancake.
That actually makes me really happy.
-So this is good. - Okay.
Julie tells me that John forgot this very important
skate dad's pancake breakfast,
which is really important to the kids.
And Lucy's favorite thing is breakfast food.
He needs to do better for her.
Grab a handful, and you can follow me with a handful of yours,
and just plop them right in the pan carefully
'cause the butter's already really hot.
This little piece goes in my mouth.
So, we're gonna get a nice little golden crust on these,
add some sugar, a splash...
of maple syrup.
That's your sauce.
When's the last time you made breakfast for your daughter?
Oh, it's been years.
I think it's gonna be a really cute surprise
if that's something you can do for her, too. You know?
Oh, it will. She'll love it.
So, now we can actually move these to the side.
- Awesome. -And we are gonna make our pancakes.
Let's start out with the drys.
So, we have two cups of almond flour.
Plop that right in.
One table spoon of baking powder.
With the sugar, we don't need that much
because almond flour is already a little inherently sweet.
So, just a couple of sprinkles from here.
And then, finally, just a little pinch of salt.
Now we're gonna whisk this up.
And now our wet ingredients.
First things first. Eggs.
Lovely.
We have a cup of whole milk. Here we have some melted butter.
And you just pour that right in there, as well.
And then, finally, we have our vanilla.
-What's our next step, you think? -Probably hit it
-with that sweet whisk action. -That's right.
You can whisk this up gently, and it's gonna get thick really fast.
What I love about John is the willingness to change is all there.
He may not know how to go about it
because old habits are very difficult to break,
but he just wants to show up for his little daughter
'cause he really loves her.
My father's obsessed with blueberry pancakes.
And mornings where he would make blueberry pancakes for me
were like, that was the best day.
It's kind of nice to just have somebody
-take care of you. -Yeah.
Even if Lucy is, like, self-sufficient, and she's able to do this on her own,
I think it's important for her dad to be able to make breakfast like this.
- Yeah. -There are two ways of flipping it.
-Like this. -All right.
-Or you wanna try? -I'm gonna wing it.
We're gonna try it.
-I was getting good at the apples. -Play around with it a bit,
and just get comfortable with it. Be at one with the pan.
-Yes. Okay. -Yeah.
You saved it. Press it down.
She's a happy pancake. She's good.
It splattered a little.
-Oh, I made a taco. -You got a half pancake.
-Made a taco on that one. -A taco pancake, that's fine.
-Nice! - Yes!
That was the perfect one. You got it.
-Stuck it. -That was so good.
And we just put the apples right over, like so.
That's good.
That's delicious.
Yeah. We're gonna be doing this.
-Right? -We can do that.
-And it's time you guys can have together. -Yep.
Every week you don't do this for your daughter,
-I get Oscar for a week.
This is a store called Houndstooth
-that I wanted to take you to. - Okay.
I think you're gonna love it. After you.
My biggest gripe about your wardrobe yesterday was that damned suit.
-Hit a nerve with that one. -Oh, my gosh.
It was actually a lovely suit.
And then to open it up and see you'd bastardized it
-made no sense. - Nobody sees that.
I know you are the first one to open it.
I know. I'm positive you've opened it over a thousand times to show people.
You don't need a schtick like that to be the life of the party.
You are the party.
- It's still funny. -Don't get me wrong. It did make me laugh.
Remind me what you would wear taking Lucy to her skate practice.
It'd just be jeans and a T-shirt.
-Okay. -Or a flannel if it's cold.
I don't mind that you're dressing casually.
That's what I wanna try and do for you today.
I wanna get you versions of what you already had,
-but a more mature version of it. -Okay.
-Sound good? -Yeah. Sounds great.
Okay. So, I'm gonna give you a chance to try some stuff on.
I pulled a few looks for you already.
I'm dealing with an overgrown boy.
And maybe I really do need to teach him how to dress appropriately for his age,
for his job, as a dad.
Come take a look at yourself in the mirror for me.
Okay.
I gave you a print, but it's just so subtle.
It's just a kiss of something.
It's not over-the-top. It's more age-appropriate.
I actually love that green on you.
You can wear a grey, a black, a brown, a blue,
all those colors, should look good.
I feel like the jackets I had in the past were...
a lot bigger, and l would only wear outside.
This seems like one I would wear to the rink.
-I like it. -Good.
John, how are you doing?
-I'm doing good. Think I'm about ready. -Okay. I'm gonna open the curtain.
Oh, that's a dapper man. Okay. Come with me.
I want him to know that there are options for suiting
that make him feel really good about himself
without having nudie linings on the inside.
Who knew?
I love the color on you.
It's similar to the one you already have, but it's a little bit brighter.
just to make it look more you, I didn't give you a solid tie.
I gave you a knitted tie, which I just think adds a little bit of pep.
I like it. I've never tried one of these before.
-Good. -Yeah.
If you were to see this guy, what do you think of that guy?
I don't know, a handsome devil.
Walking in the place. Probably a boss somewhere.
I like that. And don't you wanna feel that way?
Don't you wanna feel successful? Powerful?
-In charge? -I'll probably
throw back a few less of the cocktails at the weddings
and things, too, you know those? I'm excited about it.
-I'm glad you're excited about it. -Looks good.
Ah! Here we are.
So fierce. So cute. Gorgeous ice skating rink.
-Did I put it in park? Yeah, I did.
-Look at her go. - Gosh, she's so good.
Yes, that spin!
Honey, Lucy's tearing it up.
This is the second time I'm ever going to take the ice.
- Oh, man. -But I am...
-Cat Suit Guy of figure skating. -Okay.
Do we preorder one of those donuts to sit on for the rest of the week?
Oh, my God. I'm scared.
Oh, God. Scared.
-Best teacher ever.
-What? -My dad.
A for effort and, like... D for grade of execution.
Oh, God. We're good.
I feel like a full-on Ukrainian figure skating coach.
Oh, God. Yeah, it's good.
Oh, there you go. That's almost a backward swizzle.
-Oh, it was? -Yeah.
-Let's see one of those spins up close. -Wow.
I realize that Lucy needs a little bit more pop, a little bit more explosivity.
We need more of an open shoulder coming into that.
Uh, so, you guys, I have like kind of a surprise.
Try not to cry. Try not to lose it.
She's the most decorated American figure skater of all time.
Hi!
Michelle!
-Michelle Kwan. -Oh, my goodness.
-Oh, my-- -This is Michelle Kwan.
-Hi, Lucy. How are you? -Hi.
Nice to meet you.
-I'm John. Nice to meet you. -Hi, John. How are you?
-You're shivering. Your dad is shivering. -I'm just trying to stand up.
High-five.
I knew that this person was the only person that could ever really, like,
get us to where we need to go.
So gorgeous! So high!
-Okay. Let me see your program. - Okay. Take your position.
-We're so excited. Greatest of all time. -You're gonna do good.
I can't believe this is happening!
So good.
I'm gonna cry.
Enter into your left.
There you go.
Oh, I love that's how she gets on her backwards edge so good.
- Hold. -Yes!
On your single axel, you have to make sure that your arms...
are helping you.
John is seeing what an Olympic figure skater really can be.
He's understanding the power and the athleticism
that really comes with learning and mastering this sport.
When you do the landing, make sure you hold your landing like,
one, two, three,
-before you do anything, right? - Yes!
You have to make sure you check your landing.
You wanna check one, two, three,
then continue your program.
I love how she does that. Oh, it's so good.
You're like, "I've got this." Right?
You don't be like, "Woo!"
-No question. Yes. -Yeah.
You know, you'll be like, "Ta-da,"
-and then go, right? - Yeah.
Land on that right foot.
Oh, that was your best one. That was your best one yet, Lu.
She has a better chance staying involved longer the more you're involved in it.
Yeah, I just worry about being the parent that's pushing too much.
You know, you hear about those kind of stories.
There probably is where I could up it a little bit.
-It's like balance. -Yeah.
He's immediately learning what to pick up on, what to vibe with,
what's important, what's not.
And just to see that little spark and that little, like,
"I'm included, I'm involved" come out in John's eye is gorgeous.
-Yeah! Woo! -Yes!
-Woo! -Go, Lucy. Go, Lucy.
John, what do you think?
I'm liking it. Um, I got a couple pointers that I can watch for now.
You know, look for the strong arms,
uh, and I'm gonna kind of look for knowing where the jumps are.
I'm gonna hold my breath and do this while I'm waiting on you.
I feel like I'm part of the team now instead of just being
the dad that just comes and stays out of the way.
You're, like, an integral part of this team.
-Team Lucy. Team Lucy. - Team Lucy!
-Hey, Bobby. -What's up, Ben?
The great thing about this home,
construction wise, I don't need to change anything.
It is over a-hundred-year-old gorgeous Craftsman.
I just need to find a space for Lucy in this massive house.
We're coming to meet
the homie Bobby.
Come on in.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
-Hey, hey. What's going on? -What's up, fellas?
Your daughter has expressed to me that she wants you to be in better shape
-because she loves you. - You also expressed that.
-And she wants you to be around longer. -Yeah.
-This would be a great place to start. -Okay.
We have heart rate monitors.
I'm gonna put a high score up on this thing.
-It's not about high score.
- It's about a high score.
All right. Let's get the party started in three, two, one.
Let's go. Base. Base.
I feel like the little kid down here.
Remember, we came here to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
-You're doing good. -Thank you. Thank you.
Right now if your name is highlighted grey or blue,
power walkers can give me more incline.
Joggers and runners, you can give me more speed.
-I'm green. -Come on, Karamo!
Oh, you're in the green zone, Karamo.
- How are you feeling? -I'm glad I'm doing something.
Hanging in there, man.
How do you think... Lucy would feel about you right now?
She'd be laughing at me,
-but she'd be proud of me. -I'm proud.
All right, John. I see you up there. We're walking it out.
How we feeling, Orange Theory? Go off your base pace, Orange Theory.
You can do it, Karamo.
All right. Stretching the 30-second all out.
John may not be "enjoying" this,
but he's into it.
You can see that he's kind of excited about it.
Good work. Good.
Something that he can do
that will not only get him up and motivate him in the morning,
but will make him healthier.
I brought you here, because I wanted to help you
set a little structure for yourself, because I know that
when you work from home...
-...it's hard to have structure. -Yeah.
Doing this releases endorphins.
It helps you feel better about yourself, helps you be happier.
At one point, my office was at home.
I got depressed, honestly. And it makes me wanna stay in bed longer.
-Yeah. -Yeah. That's what I do.
-Probably time to get a little... -I've been there.
-...exercise. -I think that will not only just help you,
but also help your relationship with Lucy.
-I think so. -Because she gushes about you.
-She thinks you're such a good dad. -Oh, thanks. Thank you.
At the end of the day, you're still the parent.
-Yeah. -And she wants to feel that.
-She doesn't need a-- -It's not done yet.
-She doesn't need a heavy hand. -Yeah.
-She just wants a hand on her shoulder. -Yeah.
Woo.
That bunny hop.
This is a busy week, man.
It has been. What's it been like so far?
Oh, I like it. You guys are good guys.
I appreciate all you have to say.
What have you been experiencing?
Well, a lot of enlightenment. You know, a lot of, uh, maybe
looking at things second time
-that maybe I've been overlooking. -What have you been overlooking?
Lucy, mainly.
She's a great kid. You know, everybody loves her.
Doing great at school. Doing great at all her activities.
You know, I thought, you know, she's doing good,
and I might have been cutting off
the parenting duties, you know, a few years premature.
Why do you think that you sort of checked out a little bit earlier?
I just thought she had it. You know?
And it's kind of like, "All right, she's rolling.
She's gonna do her thing, I'll worry about my things."
So, what's been going on with you?
I just haven't...
been getting as much enjoyment out of things as I used to.
Have you been feeling depressed or sad or...
Yeah. It could be because of, you know, exercise or waking up early
and maybe just laying in bed and on the couch all the time,
just keeps feeding off itself and making me wanna do that some more, so...
I went to... visit my doctor.
I went in there, you know, got some pills. That's been helping.
So, what do you think caused you to get to this space
where you were feeling depressed?
I think I was partying too much. You know, I had a lot going on.
And then I started having some health issues with my knees and things.
I had a, like, a gout issue, and they said I had to quit the drinking.
Or cut way back.
So, then I cut back on that, but...
I lost my crutch.
That's kind of how the doctor and I kind of talked about it.
When I lost my crutch, then I was bummed.
You know, I could smile through-- I was smiling on, you know, uh,
doing hard work or whatever, I'd keep smiling through it, and, uh--
But that doesn't always
tell you what's going on, you know, back behind everything.
-Yeah. -They don't see you
when you're laying in the bed for a couple days in a row.
Even getting up to go eat would be a burden.
That's a hard spot to be in, especially as a dad,
because if I'm not feeling good,
then how can I be the best dad for her?
-You know? -Yeah.
Have you talked to your ex-wife,
and even Lucy,
about the fact that you've been suffering from some type of depression?
No. Uh, I've--
I talked to Lucy a-- A little bit about it.
And I just tell her that, you know, I'm having
-a kind of hard time. -And with your ex-wife?
That I haven't.
-But you never actually told-- -No.
I haven't expressed that to many people.
I've never-- I don't share my business too much, you know. Um...
I'd rather just get through it.
Kind of how I've always handled things.
Millions of people are feeling the same way you feel.
And a lot of men feel the same way you feel.
And they don't feel like they have an outlet,
because they feel like, "I have to be the tough guy.
I have to hold it on in."
The thing is, is dealing with
sadness and depression...
you do need support from other people.
I think you would feel so supported
if people just knew that, "No, it's not that I'm shutting off.
-I'm just trying to get myself together." -Yep.
Might be time to talk to them.
That's the key thing. You're not alone in this.
-That's the key. Key thing. -Yeah.
-I'm ready. -Give me a hug, man.
Hey.
I think I'm gonna start on your beard, king.
- Okay. - Okay.
I do like your beard. I just wanna like--
-How does that make us feel? -I like it.
-You hate it. -No, I don't. Yeah.
I think it's gonna make it easier to fasten my top buttons.
For sure. Do we wanna keep your mustache?
It's been getting in my chicken wings.
It has been getting in your chicken, but this is kind of cute.
When I see someone who has not had,
like, any sort of haircut or beard shape for a very long time,
I'm like, "There is a gorgeous face in there.
I just need to make myself like Michelangelo
and, like, start to carve and sculpt and figure out,
what face shape and what needs to kind of happen here."
Can I get, like, an amen for this beard, please?
- Amen. -Yes!
-Did you have so much fun figure skating? -That was great.
I loved that you loved seeing Lucy go today.
-She's so good. - Oh, she's...
-She smiled the whole time. - She's so good.
I'm gonna wait for you, 'bout to make out with you.
About to be Lucy's new stepmom right here.
Oh, Lucy does not want me as her stepmom. Oh, my God.
I'd be like, "4:15, get up, get your skates on.
-Meet you in the car. Bye." -Oh, yeah.
I'd be the worst.
-How you feeling about this hair? -I like it.
-Do you like it? -Yeah.
-Don't you feel like a handsome devil? -I do.
You look like one.
- Cute. -I feel good.
-You landed the quad. -Oh!
Don't you ever make a gorgeous figure skating joke at me like that
so offhandedly. You're so hilarious.
She's just adorable.
Hey, guys. They're here.
- Come on in! - Hey!
Look how handsome you look.
Jon, you did such a good job with that hair.
You look so good, John. The hair.
Isn't this the best beard work I've ever done?
Best.
All right, John. My favorite part of this house now
is Lucy's lounge.
Oh, my goodness. Look at this.
- Wow!
She's gonna love this. Oh, my.
I really wanted to make sure that I made a space for Lucy
to where she felt like this was her home.
Not just like that was her bedroom, where she came and crashed at Dad's,
but this is her home.
I made her a cute little craft area, so she can come in here and craft away.
And it's wide enough for you guys both to be able to do crafts together.
Oh, my God. I love that, making space for Dad.
A little hammock for her to sit in here, play her games
or watch movies or just relax, do her homework.
I love it.
I can already see her making all of her things,
cards, making everybody greeting cards.
She'll probably start with some thank you notes for you guys, right off the bat.
- Aw! -Be her first project. That'd be good.
In here, I know it was your favorite color,
-but I just had to get rid of the red. - Okay.
Put up some new artwork. You already had a great table and chairs.
Put in a new lighting, new curtains. And just elevated it a bit.
- Gorgeous. - Yeah, this is great.
And now...
-the bedroom. -Oh, man.
Wow.
I like that a lot. See. Yeah.
-Yeah, you did good. - What do you think?
Can't believe it. Doesn't look like the same room at all.
I wanted Lucy to see you as the adult man that you are
and not as the kind of frat boy that you were portraying,
because you're not really that frat boy.
You just got busy with work and it just kind of stayed that way.
And, you know, this is kind of your reset.
The ceilings in here are a little bit lower than the rest of the house,
so I hung the curtain rods up higher,
to actually-- it gives the illusion that the ceilings are higher in here.
Hashtag: OhMyGoshIt'sGorgeousInHere.
Awesome.
I'm gonna tell you your vulnerability, and openness,
was one of the most inspiring moments I've ever seen.
I was pretty relieved, to tell you the truth,
having been able to talk to somebody and
kind of just get it all out there and get a game plan.
Everybody's been looking at me like-- Like I'm a lazy person,
uh, not being very productive.
Listen, your courage and your bravery just to open up,
and realizing that sharing your story
is gonna do wonders for you and your family.
I know it.
Reach out.
-Give me love. -Give me love. Seriously.
And remember, it's a journey.
Yeah.
I can just imagine him in here before Lucy gets up making pancakes.
-And her little face... -Right?
...when she gets out of bed and realizes you've been in here cooking.
I really want John to feel like he's a hero in the kitchen.
Turning cooking into a sporting event
was the perfect way to get John into the kitchen.
He was all about the perfect flip.
-It's looking good, John. - Getting some bubbles coming.
John, I'm really loving your focus. This is called the classic oil pancake slide.
It's worth six points in the new code of execution.
-I'm in the zone. -Control this landing, John.
-Please control it. - Oh!
Oh!
-Almost. -One more chance.
-Move the bottle. Here we go. -Control it.
Yeah!
The crowd goes wild! We're all super fans.
It was so much fun getting John to really, like,
slow down into those reckless pancake flips,
perfect his landing, and get those circles serving 360 realness.
Tonight, you are going to Lucy's skate competition.
I want you to walk in and for her to think...
"Look at my dad out there. Look how sharp he looks."
We're ready.
Look at us. We're just, like, so punctual, so about your business.
We are very much so.
Okay, okay, okay, settle down, settle down.
Okay, this is his casual look.
-Casual look. -I like a casual.
Yeah. John?
- Whoa! -Cute!
I love the short-collar jacket on him.
And seriously, the way that your jeans are fitting your body now,
your legs look great.
-How do you feel in this look? - I like it.
It is comfortable, uh, nothing's too heavy.
I'm not getting pinched anywhere.
-Does it feel like it's still John?
Yeah, it does. It's a much cleaner,
uh, nicer, churched-up version of the old me.
-Did you say "churched-up"? - I'm loving the church John.
Look at that gorgeous smile.
We're going from the cat suit to the catwalk.
-Yeah! -Oh!
Oh, Lucy.
-Hi! -Oh...
Puppy.
-Look at your dad. -Wow.
-How you doing, sweetie? - Oh, my God.
I missed you.
-How you doing? -You look good.
-Thank you. - Wow.
-So spiffy.
I wanna know...
-what do you think of dad's look? -It's good.
Does he look like Dad a few days ago?
-No.
Is that a good thing?
-Yes. - When he comes-- Okay.
Would this John be allowed to watch, like, the figure skating finals...
- Yes. -...with us during the Olympics?
-Very much? Yes. -Absolutely.
All right, Lucy.
-are you ready to see the house? -Yes!
-He's got a major surprise for you. - Yes.
I really wanted a space for Lucy to feel, like, "This is my home.
This isn't just where I come to visit Dad.
This is my space."
I wanted to create a little spot
I like to call "Lucy's lounge."
Whoa!
Complete with craft table.
Hammock for lounging while doing homework.
-You wanna jump up in here? -Yes, please.
-All right. She got it. - Yes, girl.
- Oh! -Snug as a bug in a rug.
You guys, everyone get in here. We gotta see this big moment.
-Keep these eyes so closed. -Okay.
I wanna get mom and dad in here first. Do not peek through my fingers, queen.
-You're a champion. -My eyes are closed.
Champions don't cheat. I know they're closed.
Three, two-- two-- two, one.
Ohh! Oh!
Oh, my gosh.
-Wow. -And you specifically asked for a desk.
-Oh. -So, I gave you a desk.
It also has a mirror so you can use it for a vanity
-as you get older, putting on makeup. - That's awesome.
-You gonna keep this clean now? -Yes.
So, this has been an extraordinary week for us to be with you,
but I wanna know what's it been like for you.
It's the best week ever. I mean, you've--
You've touched every part of my life.
I mean, we had so many things that were problems.
You've increased Lucy's quality of life.
I'm gonna be able to cook breakfast, and I'm gonna be looking good.
I can't wait to show my friends and things.
That's what's killing me right now.
Only a matter of time.
Just know that you've helped me and I'm gonna be a better
dad and person because of it.
- Aw. -And hope to stay in touch somehow.
-You gotta check on me. -Instagram.
-We will. -We will, don't worry.
-Don't worry. -Yeah, I'm gonna do good.
-Aw! -I love a group hug.
This looks... absolutely... stunning.
Basically, bananas foster, but without the rum.
Ooh. I think we should watch gorgeous
-baby Lucy have the skate of her life... -Let's do it.
...with gorgeous John Stoner cheering her on from the stands.
-And we can cut these up. -Dad showing up for his daughter.
I feel like Julia Roberts in My Best Friend's Wedding
when she's holding all those things, like, "I got moves you've never seen."
Let's do this.
All right, love. Come on.
I really wanna see this figure skating.
-I know. It's gonna be so gorgeous.
Yay!
- Oh, my God, look how cute he is. - Aw...
Not to toot my own horn, but that beard trim is so good.
I loved his hair.
Whoa. What are you making?
Whipping up some pancakes.
I don't know what to say about all that.
That's impressive.
-Antoni did good. -Yep.
But, uh, speaking of those guys,
we were talking this week and...
Uh, I don't know the best way to bring all this up, but...
um, you know, I've been depressed and not talking to people.
Sometimes I'm just struggling.
And I just want you to know that I'm...
doing some things to try to be better about it
and be more involved with Lucy.
I'm-- I'm working on it.
I'm proud of you. I didn't know all that.
-Yeah. So, it's tough-- -You know you can talk to me.
-Like, we're still friends. -I know. I know.
And we can help you.
We're both here for you.
-I appreciate it. -We're a family of three.
-I'm really proud of you. -Thanks so much.
-Look at that. -Aw...
Really letting her know that it's okay to, uh,
talk about needing help. It's okay to be vulnerable.
-She was nice and gentle... -Yeah.
...and nonjudgmental.
A lot of times we see people who are just super happy
and walking around like everything's fine.
"I'm the life of the party." But yet, he couldn't even get out of bed.
Oscar...
- Like our Bruley. -Hey, buddy.
Bruley, we're replacing you. Have you seen him?
- Yes. - Okay. That was gorgeous.
-Look at the little smile. -Look at his smile on his face.
He's, like, legit proud of himself.
Oh, my God. Look at how gorgeous you are.
-Oh! -Aw!
Wow, she looks amazing.
I'll see you at the rink in a little bit, okay?
-All right, bye. -Bye.
What do you think?
These are amazing.
Thanks, Lu.
You wanna make these with me sometime?
Uh-huh.
-Definitely. -This is leaps and bounds from him
taking her to a bar
and actually making something from scratch
and having, like, meaningful interaction with his daughter.
-Excited? -Yeah.
Oh, my gosh. Yes, turtleneck power.
- I love a turtleneck. -Yeah.
-Look at that color on him. - It looks really good.
You look great, mate.
-So cute together! -I know.
So cute.
- Yes, girl, warm it up. -Yeah.
Five, six, seven, eight, reach.
You're so gonna be a dance mom.
Show all these little girls what's up, Lucy.
- Oh, she's cute. - Aw.
-You excited? -Yeah.
-Come on, Dad, give her a good pep talk. -Your little Kwan arm right there.
Yeah, I think the speed, the tucking, and, like, really bring those arms up.
I used to high jump, and that is part of it, is... the arms are lifting you too.
-He's really trying. -He's so trying.
Okay, Lucy, let's go nail this free skate.
-Yay!
-Let's go, Lucy. -Yes!
You've got this, girl. I love her, like, resolve and her strength
and her self-belief and determination.
That's a Lutz?
-Loop. -Loop.
I love her camel spin.
No travel at all now.
-The one thirty-five. -Oh, there you go.
Oh, God.
-Okay, that's gorgeous. -Yeah, Lucy.
-She did your kick. -That was very Evgenia Medvedeva.
One.
Oh, this is my favorite move.
Ooh!
Oh, gorgeous!
-Woo! -Gorgeous!
Good job, Lucy!
Throw that cat over there. Yeah!
Yes! That was gorgeous!
-That was so good. Good job. -Good arms.
Oh, look at how proud he is.
-Thank you, Dad. -Yeah.
-Aw! - They look beautiful.
And in first place...
Lucy Stoner.
-Yeah!
Go, Lucy!
Oh, Lucy!
Yeah!
Lucy won!
You gotta wave. Yeah!
So proud of you. Thanks for letting me be part of it and help.
Aw.
I just wanted to let you know that
I'm gonna try to do better on things and be around more, okay?
Okay.
-I like that. -Yeah, you like that plan?
-God, that was... just lovely-- -There's something so incredibly touching
-about a dad just wanting to be better. -I know.
Moving forward, I feel really good
about what I'm gonna be able to do mainly with Lucy.
This is the best thing that could have happened in my life.
It identified a lot of problems that I'm able to get out ahead of.
It made me feel like I can do anything.
He's single-footed the single axel of his fatherhood.
He did!
One single-axel John.