Looking back at how my parents raised me, I realize how important the lessons of responsibility are to children. I remember my father always reminding me to clean my room. He would make me take out the garbage, mow the lawn, help wash his car and clean the garage. He would offer to wash the…
Read moreSingle Fatherhood in New York City
Back in 2012, I completed an interview for a Columbia University graduate student of journalism named Acacia Squires. She found me through a post I made on a website about single parenthood and thought I would be a good person to talk with about my experiences being a single father in New York City. I…
Read moreRock Band
I spoke with my son yesterday on the phone and asked him how his after school program is going. Unfortunately, I’ve been out of town so I haven’t been able to see his transition into his new school this fall. Usually, he doesn’t tell me much but he sure was eager to let me know…
Read moreWhy marriage, not just living together, may be the key to family stability
An interesting study by: W. Bradford Wilcox and Laurie DeRose Our results suggest that there is something about marriage per se that bolsters stability. It could be the elaborate ritual marking the entry into marriage; the norms of commitment, fidelity, and permanence associated with the institution; the distinctive treatment of family and friends extended to married…
Read moreDads Don’t Babysit…
Fatherless Families bring Chaos
If Moms Were Treated Like Dads
I received 10 years of this treatment. I know EXACTLY what this feels like. It’s all good though. I stopped being defensive after a certain point. Eventually, I learned how to just have fun with the moms at the playgrounds as they got to know me better and they later realized how much cooler I was than…
Read moreWar on Boys
What ever happened to letting “boys be boys?” Take these two cases: In one, a seven-year-old boy was sent home for nibbling a Pop Tart into a gun. In another, a teacher was so alarmed by a picture drawn by a student (of a sword fight), that the boy’s parents were summoned in for a…
Read moreBattle Over Haircuts
I know all too well what this is like. I dealt with this issue for years. I still do from time to time and my kids are much older. Arguing over haircuts is silly. It is a symptom of a much bigger problem between the parents and it often stems from the pain involved in…
Read moreA Father Arrested After Taking His Daughter’s IPhone Away
I just read about a story where a father was arrested for taking his daughter’s IPhone as a punishment and then getting arrested in Texas for doing so. I thought I was reading The Onion, but it’s true. A man named Ronald Jackson discovered things that he thought were inappropriate on his daughter’s cell phone….
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