Essays, commentary and rants from Dave Taylor, single dad to three terrific kids, as he navigates the waters of divorce, single fatherhood, and parenting children ranging from 8 to 15.
This will be the third year in a row that I have been given an opportunity to talk with 9th graders at the local high school about Facebook, privacy, online safety, etc. It’s interesting each year because the kids confirm to me that they are more active than we adults realize and that many of [...]
I’m usually pretty good at coming up with solutions to technological dilemmas with my children, but I have to admit I’m a bit stumped this time, and feel like the problem reflects more on me being too uptight and less on my daughter’s ability to be engaged, part of our group, and maintain her relationship [...]
Actually, I lie. At this point in their lives — 15, 12, 8 — my kids are vehemently against tattoos, so much so that I occasionally taunt them by talking about a tattoo I want to get on my arm or my calf. They then predictably react with great judgment and insist “You will not [...]
I do my best to take care of myself, including faithfully brushing my teeth twice-daily, but I have to be candid that I hate flossing. The string, the bleeding, the hassle, it’s something I really don’t like, so flying in the face of my dentist’s recommendation, I floss once in a blue moon. If that [...]
It was fifty years ago today — February 20, 1962 — that astronaut John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth in his little space capsule Friendship 7. Perhaps not as much a milestone as Neil Armstrong and his team stepping foot on the moon as the amazing culmination of Apollo 11, but [...]
One of the most annoying of modern parenting challenges is managing electronics. Not battery life, not mediating between kids arguing about whose turn it is to charge their latest gizmo that’s “dying and I really need to get that text!” but just managing their all-too-pervasive presence in our lives nowadays. If it’s not a laptop, [...]
I got a query from a PR representative a week or so ago pitching a social network aimed at the under-13 crowd and surprised them when I responded that I was really not at all supportive of kids spending more time on computers but rather preferred things that helped kids have non-screen time and real-life [...]
A guest post… Are you a parent of young children? Do you sometimes worry about the types of shows your children are exposed to on television? Do you ever wonder if television is having a negative influence on your children? If you have ever worried about the effect television is having on your kids, read [...]
Ah, ya gotta love the effort companies put into creating interesting and meme-worthy toys for children. According to their PR team, Freaky Pets are the next big thing, and they’re described thusly: “Freaky Pets are guaranteed to make life interesting no matter what planet you live on! Freaky Pets is a new interactive product from [...]
Had a fun Memorial Day weekend with my kids and Dad in town, mostly focused around the Boulder Creek Festival, a huge outdoors art, food and activity event held annually in Boulder, Colorado. I figure it’s a highlight of living in Boulder, actually, being able to go to the Festival without a long drive and [...]
