Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison caused quite a kerfuffle in the parenting world this week when he said that the “participation trophies” his young sons had been given in their sports league were pointless and gave them back to the organization. ESPN has a good story on it, as does USA Today. “While I am very proud of my boys for everything they do and will encourage them till the day I die, these trophies…Read More

Here’s a funny story: I love Rockport shoes and wear them all the time. In fact, I’ve even written about them [My New Favorite Shoes from Rockport] and participated in Rockport media campaigns. The company has perfectly melded the style of dress shoes with the comfort and performance elements of sports shoes. What’s not to love? Still, when they approached me about helping out with the new DresSports Luxe Collection launch, I had to be…Read More

The call came out of the blue, about a week prior to Father’s Day. Denver Post reporter Colleen O’Connor had been assigned to write a profile piece for the Father’s Day issue of the Post and wanted to know if she could interview me. We talked for about an hour, then she asked if she and Andy, one of the Post photographers, could come out to the house and expand the piece. To her surprise,…Read More

Both of my daughters have had adopted Chinese girls as best friends, and my youngest’s “bestie” has been at our house many, many times, and vice versa. I certainly know many adopted children and adults and two of my cousins were adopted, but my children are all the product of my genes (for better or worse, they’d quickly add!) so while intellectually I understand the concept of adoption, the practical experience of fathering an adopted child…Read More

Okay, so I’m officially one week into my Nutrisystem adventure (it starts here: Time to Slim Down with Nutrisystem) and it started with a kick-start called “Fast 5” that really focuses on balancing my glycemic index, or at least that’s what I believe was going on. Definitely didn’t involve Vin Diesel and really fast cars, unfortunately. What proved to be the case is that it ended up being pretty darn little food and, in the…Read More

I need to just admit it: I have a fairly stressful life and not only is parenting difficult, but the particulars of parenting my children – fabulous and wonderful though they are – proves challenging on a day to day basis. You know the stresses if you’re a parent, thinking simultaneously of the moment and of the long-term perspective on things. I’ve written before about get-through-it moments versus fix-it moments, but what I don’t tend…Read More

I met Keith Zafren at the Dad 2.0 Summit in San Francisco: He kept asking questions during the discussion I led on Internet safety. We’re both dads of teenagers and we’re both passionate about keeping them safe online. Keith also wrote the book How To Be A Great Dad and is the founder of The Great Dads Project. Here’s a Q&A so you can learn more about his efforts too: Q: Keith, does it surprise you that…Read More

Ever wonder what goes through the head of a book author when they’re writing about parenting, fatherhood and the incredibly personal world of their family and relationship with their children as they push the keys on their keyboard? Imagine having thousands of people read your words, people who aren’t part of the online world but the rest of everyone too. And imagine your children reading the book 10-15 years from now too. Yikes. Fortunately, when…Read More

I’m honored to have been interviewed by reporter Martha Ross for a piece she had published in today’s San Jose Mercury News entitled Dad bloggers rewrite rules of fatherhood. You can read the full article on their Web site, but I’ll just highlight the parts were I’m quoted, just in case you have a limited attention span. I also want to note what I did and didn’t say, because as with many interviews I’ve given, what…Read More

I’m not much for fashion and I don’t think I dress particularly stylishly. I’m not quite at the point of ratty t-shirts and flip-flops, though if I lived by the beach that might happen more often than I want to admit. Still, my goal when getting dressed is comfort and if I have to choose between comfort and appearance, well, let’s just say I haven’t graced the cover of any fashion magazines in a while….Read More

I don’t know if all kids do this or just mine, but my children positively love pillows and blankets. We have a ridiculous number of both and there’s constant bickering about who got the blue one, which of the pink ones is supposed to be on which bed, and worse. It’s lunacy, really. And then there are the pillows. Across the four beds in our house, we must have at least 20 pillows. I have four…Read More

[This is a guest post from my friend Christian Toto. The sentiment is definitely one I share too.] Not a day goes by where I don’t do or say something exactly as my father might. I make weird, grunting sounds when I pick something up just like Dad, and my hand gestures mirror his so completely it’s like I’m Frank Caliendo 2.0. But am I as good a dad as my Father was to me?…Read More

[This is a guest article by fellow single Dad Broc Atkinson, whose 16yo son just had to go through surgery after a major injury sustained while playing basketball. I asked him to share how he coped with the experience…] My 16 year old son just had his first surgery from a sports injury, and these steps are what helped us get through it. I hope they’ll be albe to help other parents out if they…Read More