Toluu

Discovering Dad

Learning what it means to be a good dad.

Discovering Dad Reflections on 2008January 4

Happy New Year everyone!  Sorry it’s been a while since my last post, but my work and family has needed me to focus on them over the past month.  I hope you had an awesome holiday season and are looking forward to a great 2009!  I’m confident 2009 will be a year of positive change.

The Discovering Dad family had an eventful 2008.  We welcomed a precious new addition in baby Caitlin,  who decided to give us an incredible scare.  You can read more about it here.  My oldest Chani started high school (it makes me feel old saying that ;-)).  My boy Ty has grown into a fun yet bull-headed 2 year old. It was a year of growth.

As for me, I gained a little more weight and lost a little more hair.  I also got re-elected to the local City Council for a 4-year term.  I decided to close my business and return to work in the corporate world - the challenging economic circumstances felt by millions found their way into our home too, but I’m thankful Lori and I both have good jobs to support our family.  It was a year of adjustments.

Moving on to DiscoveringDad.net, I was excited to welcome aboard several new Contributing Writers who have been gracious enough to share their stories and experiences on fatherhood.  The most popular articles in 2008 wer

Discovering Dad Blog Carnival - January 2009January 3

Welcome to the January 2009 edition of Discovering Dad Blog Carnival.

The Discovering Dad Blog Carnival is a monthly carnival that includes fun and informative posts about unique experiences, perspectives and challenges of being a dad. It also includes posts that talk about the impact of dads on the lives of children, spouses and family members, as well as some general parenting posts of interest.

Kevin presents Family New Years Resolutions posted at More4kids.

Josh presents The Awful Little Boy at the bus stop posted at Raging Dad, saying, “I wrote this post about a kid at my daughter’s bus stop who was so obnoxious, and all I could think about was “I hope no one ever looks at MY kid and sees a little monster!” As is usually the case, when I learned a little more about the situation, I had misjudged the kid… Sort of.”

Jonathan presents Becoming a Dad? posted at Dad Central.

That co

Discovering Dad Blog Carnival - December 2008December 2 2008

Welcome to the December 2008 edition of Discovering Dad Blog Carnival.

The Discovering Dad Blog Carnival is a monthly carnival that includes fun and informative posts about unique experiences, perspectives and challenges of being a dad. It also includes posts that talk about the impact of dads on the lives of children, spouses and family members, as well as some general parenting posts of interest.

Editor’s Pick: Tony presents Being our fathers posted at Savvy Daddy, saying, “Being the product of a deceased biological father and a sole step-father, this daddy blogger has a unique perspective when it comes to the whole nature versus nurture thing.”

Kevin presents What are the Best Preschool Games? and Positive Role Models and Children posted at More4kids.

Manoj Thulasidas presents

Avoiding Chaotic MealsNovember 21 2008

This article written by Contributing Writer Daniel De Guia.

Mealtime at our house is, to be completely honest, my least favorite time of the day. By the time I’ve finished working all day and have battled through evening rush hour traffic, the last thing I want to deal with at home is more chaos. It’s taken a long time, but my wife and I have come up with some ways that work well for our family to make dinner time a little bit more relaxed and less anxious.

• 15 minutes of clean - Depending on the state of the main living area, we’ll have everybody to spend 15 minutes putting toys back in bedrooms, picking up books, putting away DVDs and CDs, or just de-cluttering in general. Myself or my wife will cook dinner while the others help clean up. This not only gets the house tidy, but can also help the kids burn off a little of that extra energy with all those trips up and down the stairs. That means, less fidgeting during dinner.
• “The besta parta day” - When the kids are in extra talkative moods, we help them settle down and remember to wait patiently by going around the table and asking each other “What was the best part of your day?” (or, as my son says “What the besta parta day?”) This little game helps force the kids to be patient and listen. It also lets us all take part in the high points of each others day. Sometimes, asking that one question will turn into a conversation of how

Sweating the Small StuffNovember 18 2008

This article written by Contributing Writer Tom Bowns.

I’ve often heard the old saw “Don’t sweat the small stuff” and the lesser-known corollary: “It’s all small stuff.” Whoever wrote these maxims must not have had to take care of any small children.

It’s nearly impossible for a caring parent NOT to sweat the small stuff, particularly when the small “stuff” is being crammed into larger, expensive-to-repair important “stuff.” Being vigilant as a dad means watching what your kids do, being sure they don’t hurt themselves, and trying to intercept things before damage is done to the house and furniture. We’re always on our toes - alert, ready to spring into action and save the day.

Most of the things kids do though does not cause permanent damage.  Most things are smaller, such as spilling cereal on the floor, leaving the door open when the heat is on, scribbling on a book with a pen, repeatedly turning on and off a light and flushing things down the toilet.  These things are annoying, but they probably won’t hurt anyone.  And yet, we often act like it’s the end of the world when they occur.

For example, the