Always Fight for Them
This past Tuesday evening I entered Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston to visit some new-found friends of mine who have been faced with a tough life challenge. I walked out of that hospital with a newer sense of what it means to fight for what you love. Rex Ryan was …
Ping Pong, Humility and Bigger Life Lessons
Sunday evening I was beaten by my 13 year old boy at ping pong. He has never beaten me at ping pong. He beat me four games in a row. The bloody aftermath was a lesson in humility and parenthood. As a dad there is an unwritten rule, an obligation …
Give Your Kid the Greatest Gift This Holiday…Your Time
Time. It seems like we have less of it with every passing year. As a parent, time can be our best friend or our worst nemesis and too often we catch ourselves wishing we had more of it. With the holidays upon us, it seems we’re caught in a million …
The Demise of Play
Okay, maybe I’m old fashioned. Maybe I am not as progressive as others. Nevertheless, the term ‘play date’ has got to be one of the most frustrating and confusing word combinations thrown around these days. I would venture to say it ranks as an award-winning oxymoron, up there with ‘a …
The Force is Strong in Mom
There is a Force. A balance if you will, that oversees the universe and keeps our planet from careening off into the fiery gasses of our molten sun. This Force keeps us grounded and mindful of dirty hands, clean underwear and brushing of teeth before bedtime. This same Force makes …
A Case for Why Everyone Benefits from Special Needs Kids
This coming summer my organization,Kidventure, will initiate a summer camp pilot program called Voyager that provides a mainstreamed camp for kids with special needs. It is the result of our desire as an organization to bring the joy of Kidventure and camp …
When 12 Year Old Boys Have Something to Teach You
As parents we work hard to teach our kids to be good, wholesome young people. We insist they say thank you, clean up after themselves, and promise not to fight endlessly with their siblings, only to be convinced that your parenting skills have fallen on deaf ears. Then we find …
We All Share in a Solution
As for so many, the tragedy in Newtown, CT has dominated my thoughts and prayers. Yet, the answers will not be found solely at the federal level, it must be fostered at the ‘familial level’. Families, communities, schools and churches, and camps in this country must take responsibility for providing …
Serve Your Kids Some Humble Pie and Teach Them to Be Thankful
Let’s face it, for most of us reading this blog, we’ve got it good. Even when we think we might not, the overwhelming majority of the world faces far greater hardships than we could ever imagine. On a regular basis we are bombarded with the hope and desire to …
Four for Four Years: Parenting Lessons For Our Elected Officials
Whether you are Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal, being a parent trumps everything Washington can offer up. And if you are like me, as much as you are proud to be an American, you are more often disgusted with the way our leaders go about getting elected to office. …