This post is unlike any I’ve written before. It's a little raw and a lot personal. It is a love letter to my wife of twenty-five years. Today, Ann and I celebrate a quarter century of life together. In actuality, we’ve been together for nearly 29 years, but since we exchanged vows and said, “I do,” it’s been 25 years. Dang, that’s a long time! I have thought of this post … [Read more...] about A Love Letter to My Wife (And Lessons Learned Over 25 Years)
Why Camping is the Perfect Family Vacation
As dads and families put Spring Break in the history books and begin to get ready for the end-of-school-year chaos, I thought it would be fitting to take a look at summer vacation planning. More specifically, I wanted to share why camping is the perfect family vacation experience. For our family, camping evolved from a single tent-camping experience at an Arizona lake (yes, … [Read more...] about Why Camping is the Perfect Family Vacation
Courage Counts
Teaching Our Kids Courage A few weeks ago my high school-aged daughter approached me concerned. A friend of hers had relayed to her a social media message that inferred a student was going to exact violence upon her school. Sadly, this is a reality in today’s day and age. She was not overly concerned, but I could sense some uncertainty in her tone. I reassured her … [Read more...] about Courage Counts
Redefining the Normal Family
By now our kids know there is no Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, or Tooth Fairy. What they have not yet learned is there is also no such thing as a normal family. Unfortunately, I think there are a lot of dads out there who still believe in this mythical creature. The problem with believing in such a thing is it can lead to doubt, frustration, and envy because we think our families … [Read more...] about Redefining the Normal Family
Parenting Lessons Learned (Mostly the Hard Way)
It Starts Out Simple Enough Just when you think you have things figured out as parents, life throws you a curve ball. These can come in the form of a child with health issues (been there), developmental challenges (yep, there too), or maybe just normal parenting friction (we’re STILL there). The point is there is no normal parenting experience. For every father and mother, … [Read more...] about Parenting Lessons Learned (Mostly the Hard Way)