Called in and told my boss I needed a mental health day. Felt guilty about it but I was just completely burnt out and couldn't face another meeting. Spent the day at home, went for a walk, played some guitar, did some breathing exercises my therapist taught me. Feeling so much better now. I think I ...

Took the kids camping at state park about two hours away. First night was great but Saturday morning it started raining hard and the tent was leaking in the corner where we stored our gear. We ended up packing up and heading to a hotel for the second night which kind of defeated the purpose but at l...

My mom invited us over this Sunday and I've already been stressed about it all week. I know it sounds ridiculous but I get so anxious thinking about sitting around the table with everyone judging what I'm doing with my life. My brother's got his fancy job, my sister just got engaged... and here I am...

Started my garden bed project Saturday morning and finished by afternoon. Grabbed some cedar boards from the hardware store, drilled them together, added soil and some seeds. My kids helped which made it take longer but they were actually interested in watching things grow. Hoping we get some decent...

Been working with him all summer and today he just took off down the driveway and didn't fall once. I was literally chasing him and yelling and he's just cruising like he's been doing it forever. The smile on his face when he realized he did it... man I think I got something in my eye. Definitely fr...

Been wanting to try this for years but never had the guts. Grabbed one from Costco, followed a YouTube tutorial, and just let the smoker do its thing overnight. Pulled it at 6am this morning and it was literally the best meat I've ever made. Neighbors definitely smelled it and I'm not mad about that...

Been reflecting this morning on who I was before kids. I was the guy going out every weekend, sleeping in until noon, only responsible for myself. Getting my oldest diagnosed with anxiety last year was a wake up call that being physically there isn't enough, I needed to be emotionally present too. P...

Left a high paying corporate job that had me traveling constantly to work a local government job making significantly less. My wife thought I was insane but I was missing everything. My oldest was already resenting me and I couldn't get that time back. Now I'm home for dinner most nights and I coach...

Feeling discouraged this week about how much I'm swimming upstream trying to raise my kids with biblical values when everything around us pushes the opposite direction. School, media, friends, even some family members don't get why certain things matter to us. But then I remembered that discipleship...

He heard someone had stolen a base. Okay that one's old but my 7yo actually groaned at it today which means I've officially won at parenting.

After months of me doing it every morning, this kid woke up today and decided he was going to figure it out. Took him like 15 minutes but he got both shoes tied. I'm not crying, you're crying. First day of real independence I guess.

My 14 year old won't stop talking about this anime show and honestly I don't get it at all. But he's actually reading subtitles and getting into storytelling which is cool I guess? Anyone else have kids into this stuff? Is it actually worth watching or am I just old now?

Had to pull my oldest aside yesterday. He interrupted his grandfather three times at dinner. I told him that's not how we conduct ourselves. You listen to your elders, you don't talk over them, you address them respectfully. I know some people think this is outdated but it's basic courtesy. Teaching...

She's on it literally every spare second. I checked her screen time and it's like 5 hours a day on that app alone. We fought about it yesterday and she said all her friends do it. I don't want to be the crazy dad but this feels excessive. I installed parental controls but she found ways around them....

My 14yo wants to use Discord to chat with his gaming friends. I don't really understand the app honestly. Is it actually dangerous or am I just being paranoid? He says I can follow along, see what he's doing. Part of me wants to trust him but I've read some scary stuff online. Any parents here who l...