NOTEBOOK
Commentary, experiments, failures (more often than not) and experiences in the field.
Jumping For Joy
It's a 'Finn's favorite things' mashup masterpiece by @blue_cupcake. He's gonna lose his mind. A photo posted by Charlie N Andy HowToBeADad.com (@howtobeadad) on Oct 10, 2015 at 11:02am PDT Last weekend, we celebrated Finn’s sixth birthday. My lucky number, six. When I started writing on this digital notebook, he wasn’t yet two-years-old. That’s some […]
How Gremlins Taught Me Everything About Parenting
They start off cute… But looks can be deceiving. Feeding them after midnight… Or angering them… …can have scary consequences. They seem like they know a lot. ..and have developed emotions. But they you have to follow specific rules and routines. Or they go nuts. Sometimes they just want to be held. But beware… You […]
The Evolution of The Pee Pee Dance
When you ask a little kid if they need to go potty, 9 out of 10 times they’ll say no. Even when their bladder is entering its fourth trimester. You see, kids aren’t on speaking terms with the call of nature and can’t be bothered with boring bathroom breaks. It probably doesn’t help that they […]
See How a Kid So Easily Out-Humans His Doctor
You’ve probably seen a post by Humans of New York before. It’s a remarkable Facebook Page, created by Brandon Stanton, with the snapshots he takes of people lives, photos and mini stories of the strangers he encounters and makes genuine connections with in New York City. This photo was posted by Humans of New York, […]
5 Tips For School Dropoffs
School has begun and people have begun inundating our social feeds with quaint, sappy photos of their sweet little bags of questions and poopies. Today, I’d like to speak to you, parents, visiting the school to drop off your kids. I’ve been going for a few weeks now, and I’ve noticed a couple of trends. […]
One Less Worry For Parents
Worrying about our kids is practically encoded in us. Some of us worry more than others, but there’s always something that nags at any parent. Even if it’s not logical. Like what if our kids chose Kanye West as their ultimate hero? The stuff of nightmares. Well, today, we’re doing something we’ve never done before. […]
My Son’s Receding Hairline
Of my many faults, some stand out more than others in my day-to-day activities. Being born to Irish descent, I contend with more than a few stereotypical issues I feared my first son would inherit, namely: bad teeth, skin and devout stubbornness. I am piously pigheaded. When my first son was born with a pretty […]
13 Lies Parents Have Told Kids
I was browsing Tumblr the other day, and came across a post that blew my mind. Someone had written out lies they’d heard people told kids when they were little. Yikes. Some of these are beyond nuts. In my weaker moments, I’ve fast tracked the truth and sanded down some edges on reality. Do you […]
How We Family (DOG!)
This How We Family post is sponsored by Tylenol. We’ve been talking about getting a family pet for years. I was the hold out. I love pets, but after weighing everything I just didn’t feel a strong enough… want. Maybe my family pet cup had long ago runneth over? Growing up, my house had […]
The Pinocchio Complex
A small boy with matted brown hair and small, painted blue eyes sat on a shelf looking out a window into the night sky. The black expanse above him stretched as far as all of his dreams stacked end to end. The boy tugged on his marionette strings and felt their threads pulling on his […]
