Tips for Working Dads

The hardest part about being a working father is spending quality time with your children. It is a hard balancing act. Here are some tips that might be helpful to to you in spending the most time with your children.

1. The most important thing is take time off of work when you can.  I know it is hard if you are the one who is bringing home all of the income and you have a lots of responsibilities. If they are young take a half a day of work and spend the rest of the day with them. If they are older leave work earlier and pick them up from school or surprise them by being at home when they get home.

2. Take a vacation that is geared to your children. It is always fun to be a kid again no matter how old you are.

3. Always do something that your children love to do even if it something that you just don't want to do. They will enjoy it even more. If that means sitting watching the same movie for the 300th time and you can repeat each line word for word. Suck it up Dad.

4. If they are older go on school trips with them instead of Mom. Sometimes moms need a break if they are stay at home moms and spend most of the time with them.

5. Join a group,meetups or local dads that do things with the children as groups. This will allow you to talk to other dads and create new bonds with other dads and also have fun with your children. 

6. When staying home with your children on bad weather days be creative. Do home made crafts. Create an indoor obstacle coarse. Even little kids like this. 

7. Go to a museum especially the ones that are hands on. Children's Museums are perfect for that. Children love getting their parents involved. 

Whatever you decide to do with your children when you are home. Enjoy them and love them. Cherish the moments because by the time you  know it they will be adults.

 

Love you with all my heart

We all think we know what love is until we have children. I thought I knew what love is.  Boy was I suprised how much I didnt know about love. There is so many different kinds of love.  The love of a spouse,  the love of parents, the love of grandparents , the love of a sibling, the love of a pet, the love of a friend they are all different but nothing compares to the love for your children.

I didn't think I could love someone as much as I do my son Peter. The day my son was born my whole life changed. Seeing that  baby which came into this world earlier than he was suppose to. He was due to come into this world by C section on November 14 but showed up on October 20th 2011. The love was there from the beginning. Seeing him with all tubes in him made me realize how fragile life really is and how much love was there for him. He just swallowed fluids and had a hard time adjusting to breathing until the fluids cleared out. He had a feeding tube too to make sure he ate. It actually looked worse than it was. He was in the NICU Unit for 3 days.

I tell him all the time I love him to let him know and to also show him that it is okay to show your love and affection. Sometimes men in general have a hard time expressing their love.
It is okay for a man to hug and kiss another man exspecially when your come from Italian heritage. Thats the normal greeting. He sees this all the time when my whole entire famiy is together.

I know he knows what love is. He says it all the time. Love you Daddy always with a hug and a kiss. It is the most fantastic feeling in the world. Or when I come home from a hard day at work or stressed from work. He comes running screaming, "DADDY" and hugs the legs. When I see this it reassures me that I am doing a pretty good job as a father.

From the day you were born to the day I die. My love for you will continue. Whatever you do in life or whatever decisions you make regardless if they are not the right ones. I WILL LOVE YOU WITH ALL MY HEART.

Peters first Hockey Game

Since Peter was about one and a half years old he liked hockey. When he was fussing my wife Kate would put him in front of the television and turn on a hockey game. He would calm down  and sit there and watch the game. As he got older he screamed for hockey. One time we went to Wild Buffalo Wings in the summer. The only thing that was on all of the television screens were baseball. Little League, Major League and Minor League and everything associated with baseball. Peter screamed HOCKEY until I put You Tube on and found him a game. He kept quite and watched the whole game.

Today Kate and I took Peter to his first hockey game. Kate's girlfriend Hilary got all of us tickets to the New York Islanders vs The NJ Devils game. They were playing at The Nassau Coliseum . The seats were not bad they were high up and we had really had a good view of the ice. I am not a really a hockey fan but thought it would be fun since Peter has a fascination with hockey.

All Peter said on our way to the game was hockey jersey house. When we finally got there you should of seen his smile on his face. It was priceless. He had a ball and enjoyed ever moment of the game. He kept saying, "Daddy look hockey". He clapped every time Lets Go Islanders played. He really did not move out of his seat during the game . Sometimes children get antsy sitting still for long periods of time. Kate did take him to a shop to buy him stuff to remember this game. He ended up with a small hockey stick and a stuffed islander bear which he calls Puck. 

The final score was 6 to 1. The Islanders did lose big time to The Devils and the fans from Jersey will gloat but the experience I had today with Kate and Peter will last a lifetime. When Peter gets older I will tell him about his first hockey game and show him pictures to relive the day we all had together .

SNOW, SNOW AND MORE SNOW

This winter has been awful here in NY. It has been cold and it has snowed so much that everyone is so tired of it.  Guess what's coming within the next three days? More snow possibly a major storm.Yeah I am so looking forward to it. NOT.  I guess we got spoiled with all of the warm winters we have been having for the past couple of years. You can  blame it on global warming. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

Snow use to be so much fun until you have to shovel it. I lived in a house growing up and helped my dad with the snow for years.  When I got married I lived in a two family house and did not have to worry about shoveling. After a couple of years  we moved from an apartmment in the two family house and to an apartment building.  We lived in the apartment building  for 5 years.Today I am back to the house were I grew up.  Sometimes now I have to shovel. Hours and hours of fun shoveling. It beats going to the gym. You work every muscle in you body giving you a full bodywork and you have to do this more than one time during a storm possibly 3 times. YEAH!

Seeing snow in my childs eyes gives me a new perspective of snow. I forgot how much fun it was. Peter loves playing in the snow. He likes to lay down in it and make snow angels. He likes to make snowmen too. We haven't used the sled yet. I still have my red flexible  flyer sled which is an antique these days. Don't you remember that wood and steel sled? Things have changed over the years but one thing remains. Why do we as kids love snow?

I really dont have an answer. Is it the pureness of that white fluffy stuff?  Maybe. Is it because it is different than what they are use too. Maybe. Could it be because it is associated with Christmas and the holidays? Could be or is it because it is really fun. It might be a different reason for each child.  I dont really think we will ever find out why.

Falling Snow 

See the pretty snowflakes
Falling from the sky;
On the wall and housetops
Soft and thick they lie.

On the window ledges,
On the branches bare;
Now how fast they gather,
Filling all the air.

Look into the garden,
Where the grass was green;
Covered by the snowflakes,
Not a blade is seen.

Now the bare black bushes
All look soft and white,
Every twig is laden,
What a pretty sight!

Poem written by Anonymous