Showing posts with label pay it forward. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pay it forward. Show all posts

Friday, July 19, 2013

Take @QueenofCussin to the Beach With You

Moms Who Drink and Swear
Moms and dads, I have the perfect summer beach book for you. Moms Who Drink and Swear by Nicole Knepper is, quite simply, the whole package. You will laugh, cry, and think in 309 short pages that you will find difficult to put down.

Now, as the titled suggests, this book is not for everyone. You need a sense of humor. You need to tolerate some, er, colorful language. Hell, Nikki uses every swear word you've ever heard and even invents some of her own. She has vulger nicknames for her lady parts and the children who came out of them. She is an equal opportunity offender. The potty mouth in me found it mostly hilarious when I wasn't cringing in amused disgust. And let me take this opportunity to warn you now about the entire chapter devoted to dog poop. Yes, there will be times when you won't believe what you're reading. There will be times when you'll be horrified that you're laughing. And there will certainly be times where you're laughing so loudly and so publicly you have to hand the book to your spouse and say, "Read this part."

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Friday, March 1, 2013

Feeling Blessed on #DonnaDay

Sometimes you need a reminder of how good you have it. I'm just as guilty as anyone. This past month or so, I've been mired in some combination of self-loathing, frustration, seasonal depression. Then, a reminder of how good I have it helped me snap back to reality. Last Friday, one of my high school classmates posted this picture on Facebook:

One of my fondest memories.
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Monday, February 25, 2013

Hope Still Floats

I missed Valentine's Day this year. That's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, and it was not due to any fault or ignorance on my part. I was sick with Man Cold before, during, and after. (It was actually more flu than cold. I was in rough shape for a few days.) Valentine's Day was on Thursday. When Saturday rolled around, I finally felt well enough to go to the grocery store to buy some essentials and make up for my absence. In addition to stocking the pantry and fridge, I bought cards, cupcakes, and balloons for the two women in my house.

Love will keep us afloat.
More than a week later, I noticed those balloons are still flying strong. I pointed them out to Peanut, who then reminded me of the time last year that the "Balloon Fairy" left balloons for her. She said those balloons also lasted a long time, "probably because they were magic." I thought it was amazing that she remembered that one little gesture from an unknown "fairy." Magic, even.

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Friday, February 22, 2013

#PayItForward: @Dad_or_Alive Wrote a Book

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

It's been a while since I've done a #PayItForward post. My apologies. I think today's will more than make up for my slacking...

When I finally entered this blogging gig full-throttle, with the fellow bloggers and the community and the sharing and commenting and such, I was a bit overwhelmed by all of the dad bloggers out there. There are tons of us. (Too many.) But there is one, to me, has always stood out from the rest. His blog is consistently lough-out-loud funny. (The second funniest dad blogger I've ever read. Wink wink.) It's also sincere. And he has, in my opinion, the best, pun-iest blog title of them all: Dad or Alive.

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Friday, January 11, 2013

#PayItForward: Guest Post from @CrazedKitchen


Returning to my #PayItForward series after a long break for the holidays, with a writer whose blog I've been enjoying for quite a while. Molly, who calls her blog Crazed in the Kitchen, is a stay-at-mom of two with a third on the way. She is the whole package: funny, sincere, and will tug at your heartstrings when she wants to. Recently, we were talking about the annoying things non-parents say, and it inspired this post from her.

Enjoy:

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Friday, December 14, 2012

#PayItForward: A Story of Giving from @SaskaDad on @DadsRoundTable

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...


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Friday, November 23, 2012

#PayItForward: Guest Post from @Dumbsainted



Today I am pleased to feature a wonderfully talented writer and blogger. "Dumbsaint," as I will call her because she likes to keep a certain level of anonymity, brings humor, passion, and insight that you don't find many places. Her blog is called Crazy Dumbsaint of the Mind. She is unafraid to tackle any subject, always putting herself and her opinion out there. Whether I agree or disagree, I enjoy reading her posts because they always make me THINK. When someone is passionate about something, and presents their argument with grace and humor, along with that passion, I listen. Sometimes, it even makes stubborn old me change my mind.

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Friday, November 9, 2012

#PayItForward: What Do Nordstrom and Mary Tyler Mom Have in Common?

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

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Friday, October 26, 2012

#PayItFoward: Guest Post from I Hope I Win a Toaster

This week I bring you a special edition of #PayItForward. A guest post from one of my favorite bloggers. Bill, who writes a blog called I Hope I Win a Toaster, is a talented writer and stay-at-home dad who I now consider a friend. Talented because he uses real words like "wont" (not the contraction, either) and makes up cool words like "sillily" (as well as the title of the post below.) Perhaps most impressive, he doesn't sound like a tool when he does it like I am sure I would if I tried.

Bill is always thoughtful, often poignant, and consistently funny. He's insightful and self-deprecating. (Sound familiar?) A pure joy to read. In true #PayItForward fashion, he even mentions other bloggers that he admires and follows in this post. Please enjoy and find a way to follow I Hope I Win a Toaster:

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Friday, October 12, 2012

#PayItForward: #BreastCancer Awareness from @Bobbutterbottom

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...


My two grandmothers died from breast cancer. Two of my aunts are survivors. In honor of breast cancer awareness, today I bring you an inspirational glimpse at a family's love, hope, strength, humor, and resolve. Which of us doesn't wonder how we would ever respond to adversity if faced with something like a cancer diagnosis? I applaud my blogging buddy Rich's openness and honesty, his sons' strength, and his wife's courage:  

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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Everything Happens For a Reason

"Everything that happens happens as it should. And if you observe carefully, you will find this to be so." - Marcus Aurelius

Thanks to a confluence of several events, I missed my bus on Monday. First, the clocks in the kitchen were set a few minutes earlier after a brief power surge over the weekend. Then, the bus probably ran a bit early due to fewer riders on Columbus Day. And finally, because of the holiday the guys I usually wait with at the bus stop weren't there to hold the bus for me.

Seeing the bus fly by my street, I shattered the pre-dawn quiet shouting, "NO! STOP!" I thought I caught a break when it stopped at the next block. I shouted, "hold the bus!" And started sprinting. It didn't wait. Crap.

Now I'm mad. Frustrated. I instantly decided to drive into the city. My Director didn't need the swagger wagon since Peanut did not have school that day either. Instead of driving to the train, My Director would take the bus to work. (And catch it on time.)

As I drove toward the Lincoln Tunnel confident I would make it to work on time, I calmed down. I thought to myself, there must be some reason this happened. I had no idea what that reason was. But believing that there was one allowed me to maintain a certain level of clarity and didn't allow the annoyance to take over. Such spontaneous introspection is rare for me. And I must say, I liked it.

Later that day, I had found my reason. I was at the gym. Normally, I have precious time to waste if I go to the gym because I am at the mercy of the train or bus schedule. Normally, missing my ride home isn't an option since I am in charge of daycare pickup. This day, however, I had no pickup obligations since Peanut was happy at home with a pre-determined babysitter. (My mother-in-law.) No need to rush for mass transit since I had driven.

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Friday, September 28, 2012

#PayItForward: It's a Major Award!


Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

Today, something completely different. A first-ever here on DKL. We're accepting, and in turn giving, an award... to 11 great bloggers. I've never done one of these award things before. But when  Welcome to Grand Central bestowed the Liebster Award upon me, I decided to make it part of my #PayItForward series. Thanks to WtoGC, a relatively new but thoughtful blogger and loyal and active DKLer, for inspiring me and giving me this award. It's a major award! Like this:

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Friday, September 14, 2012

#PayItForward: Laugh Out Loud With @GinaValley


Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

One thing I find especially challenging as a blogger is making you laugh every day. It's difficult. (And I fancy myself a pretty fun guy.) Now while I do post shmaltz here on the blog on a somewhat regular basis, I also try to make you laugh on one of the DKL platforms somehow some way every day. Sometimes, believe it or not, I feel like I fail.

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Friday, August 31, 2012

#PayItForward: A Blog That Will Live in @Twinfamy

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

It is my pleasure to introduce you to John, who writes a great blog called Twinfamy. He has, as you might have guessed from that title, twins. A boy and girl who turned one not so long ago. He stays at home with the babies while studying for his Ph.D. (He is well aware that I will NOT be calling him "doctor" when he gets his degree.) But I love his blog. He recently started a series of non-exhaustive lists, which are hilarious and interactive. And his post earlier this month about his son's lost "Ruff-Ruff" really hit home for me, especially since I once came dangerously close to losing Peanut's Lammie at IKEA.

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Friday, August 17, 2012

#PayItForward: Thoughts on Marriage and Parenting from @MyPatheticBlog

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

Sometimes someone writes something so amazing, it actually makes me mad because I didn't think of it and write it myself. My friend Kevin at My Pathetic Blog has done that to me several times. Despite the anger, I just can't quit him. Kevin writes with a self-deprecating humor that's funny and and a humility that's touching. Most recently, he wrote about his children, and the sometimes overwhelming responsibility being their dad carries:

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Friday, July 27, 2012

#PayItForward: Food Good, Laundry Bad @evinschmevin

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

As I have chronicled before, I am the cook in our house. And while I post the occasional recipe here on DKL, I don't necessarily follow recipes per se. I like to freestyle and I've memorized a lot of stuff from watching and cooking with my mom. There is one food blogger I love to follow, but not for the recipes. It's for the way she spins tales about her family and life as a stay-at-home mom while she's talking about the food. So to me she's a mommy blogger with a twist. A delicious and often hilarious twist.

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Friday, July 20, 2012

#PayItForward: Thanks a Hundred Thousand, @DaddysinCharge

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

My birthday is August 8th. I tell you this not only because it gives you a little less than three weeks to get me something fabulous, but also because that's the date I had targeted to reach 100,000 page views. Once I saw that milestone was in my sights, I thought it would be a cool "gift" to aim for. Turns out, it happened way ahead of schedule. Like this past Tuesday:

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Thursday, July 12, 2012

Hope Floats

"Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance." -St. Francis of Assisi (My dad's favorite saint.)

It was something so small, so silly, so insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Regardless, I don't think I've ever felt more helpless as a parent. Even when she's sick, there's always medicine, orange juice, and a good cuddle on the couch with Doc McStuffins on the television all day. A scrape on the knee gets a Band-Aid and a kiss. Then there are those times when she's upset, but she's most likely tired or just being ridiculous. So you listen to her frustration but ultimately, and kindly, tell her to get over it.

But what do you do when there is nothing you can do?

As Peanut and I left daycare one day recently, I was in more of a rush than usual thanks to traffic, putting me way behind on my evening checklist. Despite being forced to wait an extra 20 minutes for me; despite the fact that she was one of just two children in her class still waiting to be picked up, Peanut was no worse for the wear. After all, she had balloons. Two. A yellow one and an orange one. So I loaded my arms with all of her artwork, homework, trinkets, and tools and we headed out.

"Do you want me to carry your balloons so we don't lose them?" I asked. "You can carry your lunchbox for me." Because this is the stuff blog posts are made of, she, of course, answered "no thank you."

And what do you think happens next?

Reenactment:
No balloons were intentionally harmed
during the making of this blog post
Halfway to the car, she let them go. Even though I warned her to hold on to them. Now I know what you're thinking, and no I did not tie them to her wrist like a good parent would. Read: in more of a rush than usual. Still, parenting fail.

I made a feeble attempt to catch them. But my arms were, as you may remember, full. And my vertical leap is, as you may imagine, lacking. Peanut was devastated. Rightfully so. I can still see the look of horror and heartbreak on her face as she helplessly watched those balloons float away to destroy the ecosystem of some far-away land. She herself gave her own feeble jump in desperation. Arms stretched to the heavens, tears streaming down her now sobbing face. Her screams echoing through the near-empty parking lot.

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Friday, July 6, 2012

#PayItForward: Good News for Good People @kitkatkootie @saskadad

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

I can't stop smiling. Yesterday I received two pieces of good news from two great people. And it just made my day. It continues to make my day today. Please check out both of these posts by two of my favorite people in the blogosphere and bloggers in the peoplesphere. I truly consider both of them my friends, even though I've only met either of them on the internet. So I want to share their joy, and my joy for them, with you.

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Friday, June 15, 2012

#PayItForward: Tribute to Dads for Father's Day

Most Fridays, I will share with you a post from another blog that I find particularly moving, interesting, or funny. They will be posts that fit the DKL mold... ones I think people who read this blog would enjoy. Another blogger I follow started something similar. I also wanted to do this because someone paid it forward to me, giving me tons of new followers. So this is the least I can do...

In honor of Father's Day, I'm featuring three of my favorite dad bloggers. Over the past few weeks, they've written very powerful posts about fatherhood, being a dad, growing up, and being there. Two of these bloggers took hard looks at their dads. The other one took a hard look at himself. Enjoy:

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