Scenario: Your 13-year-old daughter comes home from school, runs crying up to her bedroom with cell phone in hand. Do you: Go up and talk to your daughter but don’t ask to see the message on the phone. Demand to see the messages on the phone. Go back to making dinner and pretend nothing happened. ...

Wow, I think this is the longest I’ve ever gone without posting. Mostly, I’ve just been busy as a work-at-home dad. Here’s a typical day during the holidays: Read the news Feed the kids breakfast Lael, do you need to go potty? (she’s in training this week.) Edit an e-mail for work Lael, do y...

I don’t remember what toy it was, but it had a lot of pieces. Seth was beyond excited as he pulled the wrapping paper off. He begged me to open the clamshell package. With scissors in hand, I cut open the hardened plastic. Why can’t toys be made this strong, I wondered? Then came the real work: ...

 When the kids and I set up our garden, we had a distinct problem: the soil underneath was hard as a rock. For those who never heard of it, “Caliche is a hardened deposit of calcium carbonate,â€� explains Wikipedia. The material bonds with gravel, sand, clay and silt to become hard as rock. ...

In recent months, my wife and kids have become hard-boiled egg fans. It makes sense: mild flavor, travels well and despite rising food prices, still one of the most affordable sources of protein. I, on the other hand, do not eat eggs because of past problems with high cholesterol. In fact, I credit ...

After 10 more hours of driving on Sunday, I arrived in Scottsdale by mid-afternoon. I gave my family lots of hugs, had a bite to eat and then we started emptying the truck. Seth joined in but Gramma watched Lael. Within an hour, some friends, who really sped up the process, arrived. It took a couple...

Being trapped inside an apartment for seven months of bad weather has put my kids at a disadvantage athletically. Limited funds worsened the situation. In the summer heat, I took my kids to the Jewish Community Center to teach them racquetball. Lael wasn’t into it that much, but Seth quickly learn...

In my last post, I neglected to mention that we intend to rent a house. We picked one out and are currently negotiating with the landlord. Although not perfect, this house would be the largest I've ever lived in ...  a little over 2,000 square feet. It's in a well-known community called McDowel...

There have been very subtle clues on my blog and a couple not-so-subtle statements in DadTalk’s comment section. Did you pick up on it? Yes, we’re moving again. This time to Arizona. Next week. Sorry for the delay in getting out the word, but there were some work considerations forcing me to hol...

In recent years, I’ve said no to gifts on Father’s Day and even my birthday. We have enough financial pressures – and clutter – as it is. Yesterday, though, my wife surprised me with a handheld Play Station – God of War edition. Part of the fun for me is figuring out how these things work ...