Not dead. Busy. And I sort of fell out of the habit. So, here’s what I’ve been up to since April: Lots of work on BigHugeLabs.com Bought a pet rat ($7) and accoutrements ($92) for the kids. Ripped up the weed jungle that my backyard had become and planted Dutch Clover instead of grass. Coming [...]

Son: Dad, what day is it? Me: 16. Son: Mmm… chicken pretzels. I’m buying lunch! Daughter: Oh yah! I’m buying, too! Me: Seriously? Chicken pretzels? Isn’t that gross? Daughter: Dad, it’s just chicken in the shape of a pretzel. Me: Yes, that’s exactly my point.

You know those days when you don’t get enough sleep and it’s Tuesday or Wednesday or some other day not a weekend and you wake up late and you have to rush the kids through breakfast and getting dressed and they seem just a little grumpier than usual and you really don’t want them to [...]

The kids have a behavior chart in their classrooms and each of them has a clip with their name on it. They “clip up” for good behavior and “clip down” when they get into trouble… Me: So, how was school today? Did you clip up? Son: No, I clipped down… But! But, Dad! Clipping down [...]

We attended our school’s open house again last night. I always get a kick out of the projects posted on the walls. One of the projects was a “Meet My Parents: Through a child’s eyes” page the kindergartners wrote. Some classic stuff. Flattery will get you everywhere, kids: My Mom is 20 feet tall and [...]

Gever Tulley, founder of the Tinkering School, talks about our new wave of overprotected kids — and spells out 5 (and really, he’s got 6) dangerous things you should let your kids do. Allowing kids the freedom to explore, he says, will make them stronger and smarter and actually safer. TED Talks: Gever Tulley: 5 [...]

The Lovely and Talented Wife, who volunteers at our elementary school, recently convinced a kindergartner to do something he didn’t want to do by offering him the next two days off from school. Guess what day it was.

School is tantalizingly close. It starts five days from now. It’s been a long Summer and the kids are both well into the tail-end boredom phase of it. For full effect, imagine their mouths gaping open like a trophy bass gasping for air while their eyes bulge out of their heads: Daughter: Dad, can we [...]