Warning. Spoiler Alert for Life of Pi. Kind of. Not really. But kind of.

My sister Amy and another friend were over recently and we decided to watch Life of Pi. I’d already seen it and thought it was a stunning movie.

I had Noah that night and had put him down for bed ten minutes earlier, and as the movie started I realized both that I’d love for him to [...]]]>

Warning. Spoiler Alert for Life of Pi. Kind of. Not really. But kind of.

My sister Amy and another friend were over recently and we decided to watch Life of Pi. I’d already seen it and thought it was a stunning movie.

I had Noah that night and had put him down for bed ten minutes earlier, and as the movie started I realized both that I’d love for him to watch it, and he’d love to feel like a super big kid staying up late with us.

He trotted out and took turns snuggling up against me on the floor and then with Amy up on the sofa. Basically, when things got scary, he’d come down by me. When things got calm he’d go up top where it was more comfortable. At one point, everyone but me was up on the couch screaming and yelling at me because I may or may not have woofed a really stink one. Haha. Oops.

Anyway�

Continue reading: Our Life of Pi Moment

I was recently dropping Noah off at his cousins’ house for a sleepover and I gave him the usual dad spiel about behaving, being awesome, going to bed when he’s told, yada yada yada. I ended by saying, “and when you’re here, who’s the boss?”

“Aunt Tomi,” he said rolling his eyes because he already knew.

“And you’re going to do everything she tells you to do, right?” I said.

“Yes, Dad.” He [...]]]>

I was recently dropping Noah off at his cousins’ house for a sleepover and I gave him the usual dad spiel about behaving, being awesome, going to bed when he’s told, yada yada yada. I ended by saying, “and when you’re here, who’s the boss?”

“Aunt Tomi,” he said rolling his eyes because he already knew.

“And you’re going to do everything she tells you to do, right?” I said.

“Yes, Dad.” He was shifting his weight back and forth, chomping at the bit to head off and play with his cousins.

Then Tomi Ann chimed in. “Anything I say?”

Noah laughed. “YES!”

“You promise?!” She asked with a goofy sneer.

“YEEESSSS!!!!”

“Okay, then hop up and down on one foot!” she said

Continue reading: Who’s the Boss?

Noah made me hit replay on each of them at least ten times. And I didn’t mind. Haha. Toddling babies are the best.

And dang. If I wasn’t baby hungry before, I am now. This is dangerous water to be treading, going through old baby files like this.

]]> OMG. I was just going through my computer, and I came across these three videos which I had forgotten all about. Noah walking for the first time.

Noah made me hit replay on each of them at least ten times. And I didn’t mind. Haha. Toddling babies are the best.

And dang. If I wasn’t baby hungry before, I am now. This is dangerous water to be treading, going through old baby files like this.

Quite a few people have written and asked me to write something, say something, or at lease acknowledge the Connecticut elementary school massacre. I will still try to post SDL’s weekly Beautiful You later this afternoon. Right now, I think this should come first.

On Friday a young man walked into an elementary school where he shot and killed 20 children and six adults. That is quite literally the extent of what I know about this tragedy.

Not because I have been without power or because I don’t care or because I haven’t had access to the news.

But because for some reason, as a father, I can’t bring myself to learn a single fact more about this senseless and horrible string of events.

I can’t bring myself to look into the faces of all the devastated parents whose images surely will be splashed across every story I read or watch about it.

I can’t bring myself to hear the tales from the survivors.

I can’t bring myself to see those tiny caskets that surely will become the most haunting photos in all of this.

I have looked into the eyes of a parent who just lost his child. It ripped my soul in two. There was so suddenly no light there. There was no hope. There was no longer a future

Continue reading: Twenty Tiny Caskets

How about something funny and light-hearted to break things up for a bit?

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah yesterday said, “Dad, I don’t wanna swim anymore cause it makes my pooter get tiny!”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on [...]]]>

How about something funny and light-hearted to break things up for a bit?

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah yesterday said, “Dad, I don’t wanna swim anymore cause it makes my pooter get tiny!”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here are a few of your answers

Continue reading: My KID said that?!

“Thanks for riling my kids all up right before bed, Dan!”

I have admittedly heard this many times over the years from many different slightly to majorly irked parents. My sister. Friends. My ex-in-laws.

I can’t help it. I’m a bedtime kid riler-upper. I’ve always thought bedtimes were supposed to be fun and magical and awesome and funny.

Well, then I got my own kid. And old habits don’t just die hard. They [...]]]>

“Thanks for riling my kids all up right before bed, Dan!”

I have admittedly heard this many times over the years from many different slightly to majorly irked parents. My sister. Friends. My ex-in-laws.

I can’t help it. I’m a bedtime kid riler-upper. I’ve always thought bedtimes were supposed to be fun and magical and awesome and funny.

Well, then I got my own kid. And old habits don’t just die hard. They don’t die at all sometimes. And every time it’s bedtime at Dad’s house, Noah and I follow the same routine.

First, we have story time. Not book time. I’ll leave that to his much more responsible mom. No, we have story time. Noah goes and gets any five toys from his room, and dad makes up an elaborate story out of them. Last night’s story was Bumblebee the Tansformer who lost all his Transformer pals and had to feed metal to the giant Tyrannosaurus Rex up on Mount Dinosaur if he ever wanted the answers he sought.

The bad news is, Bumblebee didn’t make it and there are no Transformers left

Continue reading: Bedtime at Daddy’s House

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah last week said, “If there was ever a monster under my bed, I would just grab it and squeeze the poop out of him until he left.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the [...]]]>

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah last week said, “If there was ever a monster under my bed, I would just grab it and squeeze the poop out of him until he left.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here are a few of your answers

Continue reading: My KID said that?!

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah a couple days ago said, “Dad, I’m never gonna kiss a girl even if I’m sixty seven.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was [...]]]>

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah a couple days ago said, “Dad, I’m never gonna kiss a girl even if I’m sixty seven.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here are a few of your answers

Continue reading: My KID said that?!

My son’s and my special tree.

If you were to see it, you wouldn’t think it was all that special. After all, you’d pass thousands of other aspens to reach ours. Most of those aspens would also stand lankily against the sides of the trail with names and shapes carved into them.

Other people’s names. Other people’s shapes.

But our [...]]]> There’s a tree on a trail about an hour from our home. An aspen tree.

My son’s and my special tree.

If you were to see it, you wouldn’t think it was all that special. After all, you’d pass thousands of other aspens to reach ours. Most of those aspens would also stand lankily against the sides of the trail with names and shapes carved into them.

Other people’s names. Other people’s shapes.

But our tree is different. It’s special.

Because it has our names carved into it.

We carved them together. You’ll remember from this picture that I shared during the summer of 2011. Some of you were angry that I would brutally slice into the flesh of something living.

But I didn’t care. Because that tree and that trail and that mountain are now a permanent part of both of us, and we are now a permanent part of them.

We both carry scars that we have received from our adventures in the mountains. And this tree, which is part of the trail, which is part of the mountain, now carries a scar from us.

It’s our special tree.

Not because it is different than any other tree.

Not because it is taller, or wider, or prettier

Continue reading: Our Special Tree

Noah called me on the phone a few days ago, screaming with excitement that he finally had his first loose tooth. After watching so many of his cousins and friends show up with gaps in the grins, he was chomping at the bit. Pun intended.

Of all the milestones he’s had, I think this was among the most exciting for me. After all, it’s a dad’s duty to help his kids [...]]]>

Noah called me on the phone a few days ago, screaming with excitement that he finally had his first loose tooth. After watching so many of his cousins and friends show up with gaps in the grins, he was chomping at the bit. Pun intended.

Of all the milestones he’s had, I think this was among the most exciting for me. After all, it’s a dad’s duty to help his kids yank their teeth out.

As I look back in my own memory, I see lots of blood, lots of tears, and lots of terror, all at the hand of my dad.

I will do it differently, I thought. There may be a little blood, but there will be no tears. No terror.

Famous last thoughts, I suppose.

Now, before I get into the tooth yanking, let me just tell you that I was hoping and praying that it would hit “yanking point” while Noah was on my watch. His stepdad and mom taught him to ride a bicycle, and while I thought it was awesome, I’ve secretly been a little bitter ever since. I mean… there are some things that are dad things, right

Continue reading: Dad Induced Trauma – Noah’s First Tooth Yank

Every once in a while I come across a real gem on someone else’s blog that I fall in love with. Yesterday I somehow wandered onto a blog called Diapers & Daisies to a post written back in May called 28 Rules for Fathers of Sons. And while there are a couple things I’d maybe add to some of these, I couldn’t help but think her post was fantastic.

It did [...]]]>

Every once in a while I come across a real gem on someone else’s blog that I fall in love with. Yesterday I somehow wandered onto a blog called Diapers & Daisies to a post written back in May called 28 Rules for Fathers of Sons. And while there are a couple things I’d maybe add to some of these, I couldn’t help but think her post was fantastic.

It did well, but I think it deserves a lot more love, and Sarah (who I’m quickly learning is a mom blogger worth following) was kind enough to let me share her post with all of you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! And when you’re done, be sure to go check her blog out.

28 Rules for Fathers of Sons

1. Love his Mother. He will learn to love like you love, and hate like you hate. So choose love for both of you. Devote yourself to it. Love with your whole heart and express that love each and every day. Then, someday down the road, you will see the way he loves his own wife, and know that you played a part in that.

2. Let him drive. Every child remembers the first time they drove on daddy’s lap. For that one moment, he will believe that he is just. like. you. 

3. Teach him to be picky. Especially when it comes to women and burgers. Teach him to never settle.

4. Take him to a ball game. There is something about sharing a day of hot dogs, sunshine and baseball with your father.

5. Love with Bravery. Boys have this preconceived notion that they have to be tough. When he is young, he will express his love fully and innocently. As he grows, he will hide his feelings and wipe off kisses. Teach him to be a man who rubs them in instead. It takes courage for a man to show love: teach him to be courageous.

6. Talk about sex. Sometimes, boys need to know that all men are created equal.

7. Teach him to be a man’s man. Show him how to be brave and tough around the guys. Then, remind him on the ride home that it is okay to cry.

8. Share secrets together. Communicate. Talk. Talk about anything. Let him tell you about girls, friends, school. Listen. Ask questions. Share dreams, hopes, concerns. He is not only your son, you are not only his father. Be his friend too.

9. Teach him manners. Because sometimes you have to be his father, not just his friend. The world is a happier place when made up of polite words and smiles.

10. Teach him when to stand-up and when to walk away. He should know that he doesn’t have to throw punches to prove he is right. He may not always be right. Make sure he knows how to demand respect- he is worthy of it. It does not mean he has to fight back with fists or words, because sometimes you say more with silence.

11. Teach him to choose his battles. Make sure he knows which battles are worth fighting- like for family or his favorite baseball team. Remind him that people can be mean and nasty because of jealousy, or other personal reasons. Help him to understand when to shut his mouth and walk-away. Teach him to be the bigger better person.

12. Let him dance in tighty whiteys. Dance alongside him in yours. Teach him that there are moments when it is okay to be absolutely ridiculous

Continue reading: 28 Rules for Fathers of Sons

It seems just about everybody has an opinion about when the proper time is to let the people you date meet your children. Heaven knows it’s been a subject [...]]]> >> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

It seems just about everybody has an opinion about when the proper time is to let the people you date meet your children. Heaven knows it’s been a subject that I’ve had to think heavily about any time a new love interest enters my life.

I think there is a lot of good advice out there, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that there isn’t a one size fits all answer to it.

There are so many factors that I have to consider any time I date someone. And, since I like making lists, why not make a list about this…

Top Eight Factors I Think About When Introducing My Child to New Love Interests

1)   Is this person actually going to be around for a while? If there’s a doubt, I don’t introduce my son to her. In fact, no woman I date ever gets to meet my son unless I think she’s a keeper.

2) Has my son met someone I’ve dated too recently? I’m 32. I’m single. That means it hasn’t worked out with several different women. Since he tends to like and get attached to the women I bring around, I give the loss of any relationship some time to fade and heal before I bring someone new into the picture.

3) Is the woman I just met too eager for me to meet her kids? This is a red flag to me. As a protective father, it scares me to date a woman who isn’t equally as protective. When a woman invites me over to meet her kids after a date or two, it’s hard for me to believe that she has her kids’ best interest in mind and I probably won’t be introducing her to mine.

4) Does the thought of a new relationship stress out my child? My son gives me verbal cues and body language that tell me whether or not he’s ready for me to bring someone new into his life. And he fluctuates, too. Sometimes he lets me know that he’s excited at the thought of someone new. Other times he lets me know he needs more time with just dad.

>> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

I finally did what was so hard for me to do as an over-protective dad. I brought Noah on a “tough-guy” hike. The destination, Donut Falls, which you’ll remember from my little fiasco last summer when I nearly killed myself trying to get an awesome picture.

The hike itself is relatively easy, less than a mile, and hardly difficult at [...]]]>

Click any image to enlarge.

Based on yesterday’s post, I think the timing of this one is excellent.

I finally did what was so hard for me to do as an over-protective dad. I brought Noah on a “tough-guy” hike. The destination, Donut Falls, which you’ll remember from my little fiasco last summer when I nearly killed myself trying to get an awesome picture.

The hike itself is relatively easy, less than a mile, and hardly difficult at all. Unless you count the steep half mile or so wrong trail I accidentally took Noah, Kelsey Blue Eyes, her mom, and her grandma on (don’t worry, no injuries or heart attacks this time).

It was the perfect little hike for some perfect little pictures along the way.

Continue reading: Letting Go of My Kid

It’s officially happened.

Noah’s mom and I have reached the first point in our co-parenting relationship where we have to drastically alter the way we are able to share custody of Noah.

Kindergarten is coming up in the fall, and that means Noah can’t switch back and forth as often as he has been. We’ve learned in his two years of preschool that it’s very difficult for him to focus [...]]]>

It’s officially happened.

Noah’s mom and I have reached the first point in our co-parenting relationship where we have to drastically alter the way we are able to share custody of Noah.

Kindergarten is coming up in the fall, and that means Noah can’t switch back and forth as often as he has been. We’ve learned in his two years of preschool that it’s very difficult for him to focus on school, homework, and whatnot when he’s going back and forth between houses every day. Information gets lost in the shuffle. Important things don’t always get shared with both parents. And even at such a young age it just doesn’t work. I can only imagine it will get worse as he gets older.

The hard reality is that one of us has to give up some of our time with him so that he can have the stability of one house during the school week

Continue reading: Growing Pains

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah last week said, “Dad, my smile hasn’t downloaded yet.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here [...]]]>

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah last week said, “Dad, my smile hasn’t downloaded yet.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here are a few of your answers

Continue reading: My KID said that?!

I’ve always prided myself on my mad “keep nothing” skills. I always said that everything I don’t use on a constant basis had better fit into a single closet.  After getting married, I was okay with two closets worth of storage (as a couple), but [...]]]>

Ol’ Buddha boy, surrounded by boxes during Noah’s and my last move.

>> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

I’ve always prided myself on my mad “keep nothing” skills. I always said that everything I don’t use on a constant basis had better fit into a single closet.  After getting married, I was okay with two closets worth of storage (as a couple), but no more than that.

My mom, who I love to the ends of the Earth, is a serious packrat. She has a ginormous storage room under their three car extended garage, and you practically need a machete to get through it. I won’t lie. It’s full of all sorts of awesomeness, and sometimes you wanna burrow through it just to see what treasures you’ll find. I’ve been on more than one sentimental journey into the abyss that is her storage room.

But I always swore that would never be me. Probably because I had to move her ever-growing storage from house to house more than 20 times before leaving home. Such moments were when I learned to swear and hit inanimate objects for craziness relief.

The problem is, to hold onto a “keep nothing” winning streak, you really do have to keep nothing. This would upset my first wife because she’d pick the perfect card or give me something super thoughtful, and after I’d said thank you and loved it and looked at it for a few days, she’d find it in the garbage. After all, one card leads to two cards which leads to a baby elephant in the attic. And we couldn’t have that.

>> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

I remember when I was married, my step-daughter (she was four at the time) came running in from the backyard in complete hysteria. She was screaming and hollering and jumping around like a frantic lunatic.

I had no idea what was wrong with her. Her [...]]]> >> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

stock photo

I remember when I was married, my step-daughter (she was four at the time) came running in from the backyard in complete hysteria. She was screaming and hollering and jumping around like a frantic lunatic.

I had no idea what was wrong with her. Her eyes told me there was something seriously amiss, but her panic was doing a great job of rendering her unable to speak.

I kept asking her to calm down and tell me what was wrong, and as if some demon didn’t want her to respond, she would explode in untranslatable hysteria every time I did.

I reached out to touch her, now very concerned myself. I’d never seen a child (or anyone) act that way. Before I could touch her, she jumped back. Then she jumped forward. Then she jumped to the side.

“I need to know what’s wrong or I won’t know what to do to help you,” I said, trying to keep my cool.

After what seemed forever, she suddenly froze and looked at me, her eyes bulging red, her cheeks stained with tears. Her little arms were above her. And even though frozen in place, she continued to cry.

“It’s… in… my… shirt!” she wheezed between sobs.

>> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

“Dan, you always write about making time for yourself as a parent, but how do you do it if you can’t afford a babysitter and you don’t have family nearby to help you watch your kids?”

This was an email [...]]]>

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

“Dan, you always write about making time for yourself as a parent, but how do you do it if you can’t afford a babysitter and you don’t have family nearby to help you watch your kids?”

This was an email I just got, and since starting Single Dad Laughing, I’ve been asked this many times.

The answer is simple.

And fun.

And awesome.

And I’d even go as far as to say nifty difty.

Do a babysitter swap.

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

To my dad this Father’s Day. Love ya old man.

To Be the Perfect Dad

When I would get caught in a lie
His hand was often firm
When I would fail to do my chores
His voice was all too stern

When I would fuss and moan and groan
At the green things [...]]]>

To my dad this Father’s Day. Love ya old man.

To Be the Perfect Dad

When I would get caught in a lie
His hand was often firm
When I would fail to do my chores
His voice was all too stern

When I would fuss and moan and groan
At the green things on my plate
He’d sigh and give me one hard look
That said ‘trouble now awaits�

Continue reading: To Be the Perfect Dad

To know me is to know that I love summer, and I’m tickled as pig hoof pie that Noah is developing a love for summer as well. It’s a very important season to us because… well… it’s the season of endless fun!

He’s still got [...]]]> >> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here (below). Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

To know me is to know that I love summer, and I’m tickled as pig hoof pie that Noah is developing a love for summer as well. It’s a very important season to us because… well… it’s the season of endless fun!

He’s still got two days of school left, after which time we’ll be free as can be. So in preparation for our big responsibility hiatus, we went to Wendy’s and decided to make an “official summer plan” while we downed some grub.

Noah started devouring his chicken nuggets while I dove head first into my Berry Almond Chicken Salad (yeah, that’s a real thing, and yeah, it’s as good as it sounds). I pulled out a pad of paper and asked Noah what we should call our list.

“Call it the ‘we gotta do it during the summer list!’” he screamed.

“Okay,” I said as I wrote his exact words across the top. Then I told him to tell me everything we should put on our list. But, before he could say anything, I made him pinky promise me that we would do everything on our list during the summer, no matter how long it was.

Now, I wasn’t necessarily expecting much of a list. I mean, how many things can a five year old come up with?

Apparently a lot.

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

I did open them a couple minutes ago, barely. It took super human strength to do so. The clock said six…. something. It’s still mostly dark outside. Nobody should have to wake up this [...]]]> This is a post I’m writing on blind faith. I hope the words are coherent and legible. Heck, I hope I’m typing the right letters at all. After all, I can’t see my computer screen when my eyes still won’t open.

I did open them a couple minutes ago, barely. It took super human strength to do so. The clock said six…. something. It’s still mostly dark outside. Nobody should have to wake up this early. Nobody.

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

The problem was, they fit him perfectly.

And that got me all sentimental. And that got [...]]]>

Noah as a wee itty bitty one.

The other day I went to pick up Noah from his mom’s house, and she held his feet up for me to check out his brand new shoes. They were nice. But they were ginormous. And by ginormous, I mean that they were shoes that could only fit on a big kid. An older kid. Not on my kid.

The problem was, they fit him perfectly.

And that got me all sentimental. And that got me to pulling out baby pictures. And that got me to thinking about the things I miss most from his baby days. And that kind of thinking is dangerous cause it makes me wanna have another one.

I mean, let’s all be honest here. Babies are the best ever.

Anyways, since I’m a list maker, I made a list.

1) I miss the days when my child stayed in the exact spot I left him. When he couldn’t even roll over yet, and I could wedge him against some pillows and I didn’t have to worry about him running out the front door or out into the street. I definitely never had to worry about him getting into the knife set, the medicine cabinet, or those bedroom drawers that you hope your mom doesn’t see should you croak unexpectedly.

2) I miss his tiny hands. The way they clasped around my finger because I touched them and not because I said, “hold my hand so you don’t get hit by that cement truck.”

3) I miss his baby laugh. High pitched and tiny, the greatest sound on earth. A sound that makes every worry melt away, including but not limited to work stress, sleep deprivation stress, relationship stress, health stress, in-law stress, and crazy psycho killer on the loose stress.

4) I miss his toothless grin. The way he would gnaw away on my finger like he was trying to clean the last tender meat off of a baby back rib, and I would start to giggle, and the weirdo on the bus next to me would say “what’s so funny?” and I’d just give him a look that said, “touch my baby and you die.”

>> I published this post for the Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah this morning said, “Dad, I’m gonna pull the hair out of your butt and make you a taco burrito with it.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what [...]]]>

You know what they say… Kids say the darndest things. As a parent, I am reminded of that daily. Like when Noah this morning said, “Dad, I’m gonna pull the hair out of your butt and make you a taco burrito with it.”

Ummm…

Anyway, in an attempt to feel like a normal parent, I asked you on the SDL Facebook Page what the funniest thing was that you’ve ever heard a kid say. Here are a few of your answers

Continue reading: My KID said that?!

When you string those powerful words together, it sounds like the dastardly headline of yet another Hollywood tragedy. I’m guessing you wouldn’t conjure up any of those words while thinking of everyday moms and dads who work ceaselessly to be good moms and dads. I know I didn’t used to.

But what if booze, parties, and sex actually help a lot of parents be better parents? Is that [...]]]> Booze. Parties. Sex.

When you string those powerful words together, it sounds like the dastardly headline of yet another Hollywood tragedy. I’m guessing you wouldn’t conjure up any of those words while thinking of everyday moms and dads who work ceaselessly to be good moms and dads. I know I didn’t used to.

But what if booze, parties, and sex actually help a lot of parents be better parents? Is that possible? I know many parents who would adamantly tell you, YES. It’s not only possible, it’s very much a reality.

But before you string me up by my ankles for defacing the sanctity of parenthood, read the following paragraphs and let’s have an interesting discussion about it.

1) Tanya, a single mother of two, really enjoys any chance she can find for booze, parties, and sex.

And…

2) Tanya, a single mother of two amazing girls, works two jobs to make ends meet. Finding time for herself can be challenging with how much she gives her little ones, and there is no doubt that the stresses of life can often be overwhelming. Her social life is usually the last thing she worries about, and her friends are lucky to break her away for a night of fun. Her boyfriend often feels neglected in their relationship, but is generally understanding that her schedule simply doesn’t allow much time for him. Sometimes, after the kids are in bed, the two of them forget about everything else, finish off a bottle of wine, and savor some much needed intimacy. On other even more rare occasions, she is able to find a babysitter and go out for a night on the town with her girlfriends. They go dancing, karaoking, and usually get drinks together. This, of course, leads to all sorts of silliness and fun. When the night is over (whether it’s with her boyfriend or her friends) and it’s back to real life again, she always feels so rejuvenated and ready to take on the world. She’s more patient and pleasant with her kids and somehow the strains of life give her a temporary reprieve. I really need to find time for that more often, she always thinks.

These are obviously two very different paragraphs, yet essentially they both say the same thing, don’t they? Tanya (a fictional mother) drinks, has fun, and seeks out intimacy. The difference is, when the only thing we read is paragraph #1, we tend to think something very differently about Tanya than we would if the only thing we read is paragraph #2.

As outsiders, we tend to watch other parents and we scrutinize their every action. We judge parents like Tanya based on the limited information that we get from externally observing her and her activities. We hold her against our own beliefs of what is right and wrong and we blatantly decide whether she is a fit parent or not. We see her out and about, being careless, having fun, going a little crazy with her friends, and we think what kind of mom is she?

>> I published this post on my Babble Voices blog, and I’m only permitted to post a snippet of it here. Read the whole thing and comment on Danoah Unleashed. >>