Stories for Dads and Moms who Need a Laugh

Last night, I was watching a live feed from "That Dad Blog" . I started watching when receiving a notification from Instagram telling me that Alan, the man who runs that dad blog, had started a video and, curious, I decided to check it out. Challenges for Parents and Children The video was a good one. It was Alan walking down the road he lived on with his wife and children. As the family was walking, Alan was talking about how life had been going for him and his brood. The main focus of the video seemed to be his adopted daughter. His girl was born in Colombia. Learning English has been just one of the many challenges she has faced with her adoptive family. In addition to learning the language and customs of the family she is now living in, she is also dealing with the challenges that come with being a teenager and going to school. To me, it seems she has a lot of support from her family, and I hope things are going relatively smooth for her in her life. My wife and I have a...

When I am travelling to see friends and family, I usually take a detour through one of my old neighborhoods or past an old school or job. A simple drive home from somewhere usually becomes hours-long, much to the chagrin of my children. Certainly I'm not the only one who passes through a place that was once a routine in their previous life. Some people leave and never look back because they don't need to. They lived that part of their life and they don't need to visit that part of the past any longer. Not me. I go back and visit the ghosts every chance I get. There are times when people need to go back to an old neighborhood. Sometimes they need to pick something up from their parents or, in a worst-case-scenario, a relative has died and something needs to be picked up. Unfortunately, there may be a time when you have to go back to the old neighborhood to take care of some business, usually after the loss of a loved one. Murder at Whispering Pines Lai Holmes has written ...

Fruit Loops huddling up at the lake. Wife and The Boy recently took a trip together, but it wasn't just the two of them. Instead, Wife thought it would be a good idea if The Fruit Loops went down the Cape for a few days. The Boy was obviously ecstatic about this idea. He and his crew riding around town on their bikes and hanging out at various places certainly seemed like a great idea. The plan while down Cape Cod was for Wife to work during the morning, and then making sure all of the Fruit Loops were alive and well when she finished work in the afternoon. Afternoon trips would include the beach, the pond, or maybe just a walk downtown where the boys could enjoy some ice cream or a drink. The Boy was obviously excited at the prospect of hanging out with his gang for a few days. It made me think of a time when I spent a week with friends in New Hampshire. My brother and I spent a week with friends at a rented house. The week included games of wiffle ball, squirt guns, trips to the...

Meals are an adventure. I've been saying it for years. I have three children, one of whom is a vegetarian. Sometimes I will cook a meatless meal for everybody if things are busy enough. If I have the time, and I usually do, I will cook one vegetarian meal for The Oppressed and a meal with meat for the rest of the family. Trying New Recipes Wife and I like to try food from different parts of the world. Her tastes are a little more exotic and adventurous than mine, but that doesn't mean I would say "No" to something new. Wife and the kids do like to eat Asian cuisine. I lean more toward Cajun food. I cook it whenever I get the chance. Cooking meals can be a bit of an adventure for me in other ways. Three children to cook for means looking for the lowest common denominator when I do decide to cook one meal for everyone and not a separate vegetarian meal. I have to find something I know all of the children will eat. Of course, there is also the issue of Wife and myself, w...