Who said good things don’t happen to good people? I really appreciate Foster Dads, as they give lots of love and guidance through tough times.
Lucky guy, but we’re all the lucky ones to know that there are people like this to step in if any of our kids were to need help in the future…
Glenn Sacks is taking part in a teleseminar called Being A Better Dad. This is potentially a good resource for fathers struggling with child custody or co-parenting issues.
Getting Things Done - is hopefully what Dads do best. If you, like me, use some of David Allen’s principles on a daily basis, here’s a taster of how you can apply GTD to your finances.
I regularly read this great mag for Dads, published quarterly in the UK, by Conde Nast, who also publish GQ. You might be able to pick one up in Barnes and Noble, or Borders.
From their own blurb….
THE ESSENTIAL DAD MAG
FQ, the first in a new genre of men’s magazine, developed entirely for family-oriented men who’ve grown up and subsequently grown out of the stable of lads mags on offer today.
Targeting all fathers and men whose lives and perspective have changed as they’ve entered fatherhood. FQ is set to revolutionise the men’s lifestyle market by celebrating parenthood and lifestyle changes that come along with it. Solely catering for today’s modern man, FQ reflects the lives and aspirations of men who have grown out of ‘lads mags’ and require a more sophisticated read to suit their newly acquired tastes and interests.
Dads always get asked for help with homework, that is, if your kids actually pass on the fact they have some. How do you keep the old grey matter ticking over, without going into it full time?
Adult learning is great way to keep in the game, so to speak. It also could have benefits for your job, especially if its learning a new skill or language.
In the UK, we have a great distance learning resource, the Open University. I’m sure that there are lots of options for you near where you live.
It does take a bit of perseverance and willpower, and is a foolhardy exercise for the procrastinators among us.
It can be especially useful for stay at home dads. It is flexible enough to work around your various commitments, and if delivered properly, is easy to break down into bite-sized chunks. Some providers offer local in person tutorials, or online conferences or bulletin boards, so you can make friends outside your normal circle.
I am currently doing 2 courses, one on essay writing and one on interaction design. The subject lists are endless.
I find it a bit stressful, sending the assignment off, and waiting on tender-hooks until the result arrives, but most of the time its worth it, and really satisfying.
The Problem
When my daughter was born it became instantly clear that my ’seat of the pants, I can remember everything’ attitude had to change . I started to steadily come unstuck when I met the ever-growing freight train of ‘things to remember’.
Has the baby had her feed?
Am I giving the wife enough attention?
Where are the cats?
Do the rabbits need cleaning out?
Did I get fuel for the car ? …..aaarrrggghhh!
The Solution
I found two really good tips as a starting point. Firstly, was to get rid of as much unwanted tasks as possible. Secondly, to get rid of as much clutter as possible.
-I laid a patio, put in some evergreen shrubs, and barked over a large part of the garden, so as to reduce maintenance.
-I cleared the shed, bought a new mower, a new tool box and shelves, and labelled everything.
-I bought new cupboards fro my daughters room, and got everything away.
-I got rid of the old bike I had been planning to fix, the spare car parts from previous models, and old sports equipment.
-My wife and I got rid of any everyday clothes we hadn’t worn in twelve months (and replaced tatty ones we had).
And lastly we reduced our non-work activities to those we could do as a family. It actually helped us spend more time together planning trips for the next week.
I got a lot of help with these tasks from Dawna Walters book, The Life Laundry. It’s a great book, and it gives you great tips for clearing stuff you don’t need. It is very prescriptive, and if you have lots of storage space you wont get a huge amount out of it, but if you, like us, are rapidly running out of room, it’s a godsend.
The only problem is though, if you’re planning to have more kids, where do you keep all the gear until they arrive?
I’ll answer that one next time…
/>Yes, admit it, you probably bought the PS3 as much for yourself as for your kids, anyway, how many years allowance would it cost. With all the fantastic titles available, how do you monitor and ensure that you are the one to teach them about war, violence, and sex???
ps3, gaming, sex, violence, fatherhood
NASCAR SpeedPark
A family favourite since its opening, the NASCAR SpeedPark is one of the area’s top tourist attractions offering five exciting go-kart tracks, kid-sized rides, NASCAR Silicon Motor Speedway simulators, a SpeedDome arcade, Thunder Alley slot car racing, the Laser Tag arena, an indoor playground and a NASCAR merchandise and apparel gift shop.
Playdium
Into video games and simulators, then try Playdium in Mississauga. Over 40,000 square feet of simulators, rides, arcade games and more. Open from Midday most days.
CN Tower
Although I already mentioned the CN Tower in a previous post, I forgot to mention a few cool things about the visit to the CN Tower.
- Travel at 33 km/h, Glass Fronted, ears guaranteed to POP!
- Watch little kids scare the adults by jumping up and down on the glass floor, LOL! Its only 1122 feet straight down!
- You stand in a booth and get blasted with little jets of air, the Smiths Detectors can test for miniscule traces of explosive on persons or clothing. Reminded me a little of the corridor scene in Resident Evil , very sci-fi. (Insider note there, most of RE and its sequel were shot in Toronto, they even blew up City Hall in RE Apocalypse!).
Hockey Hall Of Fame
Great place to see Gretzky’s first skates and stick, lots of other memorabilia, and The Stanley Cup!, great shop, and best of all you can try out against Curtis Joseph! Its all at the Hockey Hall Of Fame
hockey hall of fame, cn tower, playdium, geekdad, fatherhood, entertainment, toronto
Who says kids don’t apply themselves these days? Steven Henderson, a 15-year-old in Britain, heard about global warming and climate change in school (where, he admits, he’s a “hopeless” student) and got his dad to buy him about $20,000 worth of biodiesel-making equipment. Now, he says, “I would like to be a really big oil producer.” Look out, Exxon
Dad may have to reassess his life. Funny, also sad and disturbing. Near-classic. Says everything about today’s material world in a few sentences. The kid wants what he wants.
In Japan, fathers traditionally have little to do with child-rearing. But in now, fatherhood is fashionable, and new magazines devoted to young fathers are highlighting the trend…
I found this article on Digg while doing a little research. Lots of facts and figures, some great, some scary (like a college education for a baby born in 1999, $200,000 !). Why they decided on 72 things, I don’t know …
The 2005 census put the number of at home dads at 159,000, and lots of sites, and blogs are catering to this new trend. One noted example is Rebel Dad. created by Brian Reid. It is a really clear site with lots of opinions, activities, and links for at home dads. Take a look…
Although I work full-time, I work shifts so quite often drop my daughter at school, then come home and do some housework before going to work later in the day. I get most of my days off during the week, so get little shopping trips done as well, while the stores are quiet.
It does also allow me to do some writing, for this blog in fact, and some studies with the Open University.
Air Canada Centre
Air Canada Centre is a state-of-the-art arena that is home to the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association and the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League.
Rogers Centre (formerly Skydome)
Famous for its retractable roof, the Rogers Centre is home to the Toronto Argonauts football team and the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team, 1992 and 1993 World Series Champions.
Recently nominated one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World, the CN Tower features glass floor observation decks, a revolving restaurant, and a Simulator Theatre. It is Toronto’s most recognizable landmark and as such, it receives almost two million visitors annually.
Canadian National Exhibition
For the past 120 years, the 18-day Canadian National Exhibition, which runs from mid-August until Labour Day weekend, has traditionally signified the end of summer to two million visitors from across Canada and throughout the world. The "Ex", as it is better known, is the largest annual exhibition of its kind anywhere.
Situated on the shores of Lake Ontario, the Ex is a 350-acre carnival of entertainment, rides, buildings, sports and agriculture. It is also the site of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair held each November.
Ontario Science Centre
The Ontario Science Centre offers interactive and multi-media exhibits with live demonstrations and exhibits on topics that include sports, space, the environment and the information highway. The Science Centre entertains and educates more than 800,000 visitors each year.
The Toronto Zoo
Divided into geographic regions, the zoo’s 710 acres feature more than 5,000 animals in their natural environments. Its new Africa Savanna exhibit includes a 32-acre walking safari through the wild lands of East Africa.
Paramount Canada’s Wonderland
Canada’s largest theme park was built in 1980 on 300 acres of land just north of Toronto. It features more than 180 attractions and 50 thrilling rides, including Canada’s only suspended roller coaster and the largest outdoor wave pool in the country.
Ontario Place
A 96-acre modernistic culture, leisure and entertainment parkland complex built on three human-made islands over the lake, Ontario Place features restaurants, a children’s village, an outdoor amphitheatre, a water play area, mini-golf, the Rush River Raft Ride and many other attractions. The highlight of Ontario Place is the Cinesphere - a six-story curved screen capable of showing not only regular 35 and 70 millimetre films, but IMAX films as well.
My daughter gave me a great easter card she made herself today, it really cheered me up after a hard day at work. She’s great…
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