Category: Adventures of Being a Dad

Described as a Hispanic Male

Walked to a usually quiet local playground today with my kin and as we approached I noticed a tattooed dude near the structure. He stood about 5’7″, Hispanic, wore a black t-shirt emblazoned with the photo of Marilyn Monroe sporting a bandana. Long black socks and black tennis to match. Khaki long shorts. Bald head, goatee and a variety of body arts on his arms and legs.
My pace slowed as we came near him and then we heard “daddy chase me” coming from behind the slide. This was just a dad…a dad just like me who took his tykes out on a Sunday stroll.

Now I sit here at the swing thinking…what would his Facebook post about me say?

Righteous Indignation

Even from the farthest and most opposite side of the house (with the laundry machine on) there’s a certain tone of voice that tells THIS dad that an ensuing argument is manifesting. With righteous indignation I stomp towards their room ready and prepared to hand out swift justice. On the approach I hear my oldest tell my youngest that “you don’t always get what you want but if you play nice you may get what you need.” 
Stunned I wait and then the game commences again quietly. I step back and away slowly from their door…they did the work for me and I have nothing to add.

A Fairy Accounting

Some days just turn on a dime and this afternoon I had to mange a fairly detailed and emotional audit.

Seem that because of the hectic nature of the last few days there were a few but significant miss-entries in the ledger. It’s all sorted out now and our accounting is reconciled but to imagine that this whole thing started because someone lost a tooth yesterday, the tooth-fairy made a late night deposit and we’ve been trying to teach the kids the pragmatism of keeping a check-book.

Dad Stories – Death and Eggs

We had an unexpected talk about the meaning of death around the breakfast table this morning after listening to my kids telling silly scary stories that involved one another.
It’s challenging to hear your kids utter some words and as I heard them a twinge of pain fell over me. I stopped them and asked to talk.
We discussed the finality of death and what it means to loose someone close to our hearts. The dog we recently lost was brought up and that we would never see her again. This hit a nerve. A sad one.
I did not like to break up their imaginative silly talk with a serious conversation. But at that point my adventurers needed to know my feelings on the matter and how it was impacting me. 
It’s not easy this parenting gig and I can’t say I handled it perfectly but I think we all grew up a little over eggs and biscuits.

To Tell the Truth

I called him over and put my hands at his shoulders. We locked eyes and I saw a well of emotion creeping up as his eyes started to tear up. 
“Tell the truth….please tell me what happened.” After a brief paused he told me and a tear ran down his cheek. Was I angry? Yes…but that was transitory as it was an opportunity to teach my son about taking ownership of his own actions and trust that he could talk to me about what was going on his life. 
We hugged and he’s now raking the entire back yard…he’s surprisingly okay with the punishment he was dealt.

Christmas Gift

I rose….EXCITED. The morning finally came and I was ready for the result of the very very long wait. No…I wasn’t looking for present from Santa (though totally real) I was adjusting my eyes to the light so I could see my kiddos discover the gifts that arrived magically through the night. 
And that buenos amigos may be the best gift of all.