Fatherhood
September 2026
: Wholesome Is it necessary to know everything? Our default position is that we want to be presented with all …
August 2026
: Perseverance Life is a marathon that is held in far from ideal conditions. Every runner trains hoping for the …
July 2026
: Empty House One or two weeks a year, all four kids end up spending a week or so with their grandparents. Whether …
May 2026
: At Play Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest, just as on Friday we are supposed to abstain from meat or …
April 2026
: Building Parents only get eighteen years with their children. The goal of parenting is to take a child under …
February 2026
: Always Giving Life as an adult is always busy and always full. It’s why when we return from vacation, we seem to …
November 2025
: Guy Club Benedict attended a Catholic summer camp this year, a transformative experience that I still see …
February 2025
: Blending We’re back from our annual family ski vacation, and had another successful year. Though more skiing …
December 2024
: Nothing to Do Last weekend, I drove solo with my two oldest children across the country. There was plenty of …
September 2024
: Forgetting to Shift Life, and parenting, is full of shifts. From infants to teenagers, our children progress at a rapid …
: Dig Deeper It’s easy to wait for whatever’s next. Let this moment pass by, it’s nothing compared to what’s …
August 2024
: Contagious Late last week, my neighbor across the street was out attempting to finish mowing his lawn. It was …
July 2024
: Magnet Summer continues, and my children still blissfully spend their days with ended self-directed …
: Summer Break Summer, like all seasons, is racing past. When it seems like just yesterday school’s shut their …
April 2024
: Custom Parenting Last year, when we got a dog, I thought that life would be simple. Dogs, unlike cats, are thought to …
March 2024
: At Your Altar Parenting is a regimented and structured adventure, with known milestones sprinkled throughout the …
February 2024
: More Important Things Friday was a good day. Although it started straightforward enough, my plans were busier than usual. …
: 6,750 Parenting young children is exhausting, and although I know my aunt is being truthful when she …
January 2024
: Unraveled For the entire existence of humanity, there has been a singular experience that unites us. No matter …
June 2023
: Fatherless A decade ago, at the height of the third-party mobile app ecosystem, I was trying tons of shiny new …
: Empty Halfway through my kids’ summer vacation, and I’ve hammered through my to-do list. Projects, tasks, …
May 2023
: Quiet Summer vacation is finally here, and the kids are off with their grandparents for two weeks. Alison …
: Checkpoints The cold days of winter are behind us as the days grow warmer and spring fills all of us with a …
March 2023
: Ten Ten years ago, I launched this blog. With a plan, and a few months worth of work, I wrote and …
: Calm For nearly fourteen hours each day, my life is filled with abundant sound and light. Some of it is …
February 2023
: All on the Field I have 60–90 minutes each evening between when the children are finally in bed and when it’s time …
August 2022
: Letting Go of Efficiency It’s a Friday morning and time to run errands in the big city. Before we leave the house, I cycle …
June 2022
: Fathers for Good God’s plan of salvation for the World contains essential truths and profound beauty. He chose man to …
: Friday Night Adoration This week, Benedict will complete his initiation into the Catholic faith when he receives the …
May 2022
: A Time for Play Work expands to the time that you give it. Work is a good thing, giving structure and purpose to our …
November 2021
: Dads on Duty There’s a great human interest story making its rounds about a high school in Louisiana. They’ve …
September 2021
: Do Nothing My day has a way of getting away from me. For the first 90 minutes that I’m up, I’m in complete …
August 2021
: Humble Fatherhood This November is the two-year anniversary of the release of my book Humble Service, a book about the …
July 2021
: A Quiet House On Saturday morning, I woke up at 5:00am and went for a walk. I came home, sat down, and read the …
June 2021
: A Father’s Love What is the measure of a good father? Is it the serenity in his house, the manicured lawn, or …
May 2021
: Invest Today My knowledge as a parent goes only as far as my oldest child. I know how to deal with young kids, …
January 2021
: These Days Over the weekend, I finished reading a book. The last time I accomplished that feat was in August. …
November 2020
: Praying As A Parent For nearly three years, I’ve done most of my shopping via pickup. From time to time, though, I need …
October 2020
: Life with Four I bring a lot of structure and process to my life. During the day, when I’m alone with my children, …
September 2020
: Troops I came up in the Boy Scouts program, rising from the 1st Grade Tigers program to the rank of Eagle …
: Default to Yes A new school year is upon us. For many parents, September is like a second January, a natural point …
February 2020
: Teaching Kids Why Our society is suffering from an intellectual sickness. We lack curiosity. Ideas are no longer …
: Consistency About the time that dinner ends each evening, I crash. My energy runs out, and I want nothing more …
January 2020
: Cherish Your Children After several months of vacation, I’ve gotten back into my routine of walking each morning before …
: Seeking Rest As the stay-at-home parent in my family, I struggle with the tension of rest. There are some days …
December 2019
: Not from Scratch I woke up at my normal time on Saturday morning, went for my walk, came home, and got ready for the …
November 2019
: Humble Service Life as a stay-at-home dad was nothing like I expected. For the first two years, with only a toddler …
: Servant Leadership Many people want the title, pomp, and circumstance that comes with leadership. They crave the …
October 2019
: Read A Book When you think about your overall health, or even your performance as a stay-at-home dad, I want you …
July 2019
: All-Time Fatherhood Expectations of fathers change over time. There was a period of time where the only requirement of …
: Soft Power In the world of international diplomacy, there are two main forms of exerting pressure on another …
: Like an Abbot St. Benedict is a well known figure within Catholicism, but his impact had a direct role on the …
May 2019
: Goodbye, PBS Kids Parenting in every era has its unique challenges. It’s never been easy and the challenges are always …
November 2018
: Shepherd Your Flock Parenting takes courage. I’m the parent of three small children. I stay home with them during the …
October 2018
: Zero Screens I have an ambitious goal. In many ways, it may appear opposed to who I am as a person. I consider …
June 2018
: Comprehensive Sexual Education Parents have to do many uncomfortable things, not least of which is provide their children with a …
: Dear Father I’m the youngest of three kids. Before I had my first child, I didn’t know anything about kids. I …
February 2018
: Resilience As a parent, I have a ton of things that I want to teach my children. I want to give them the skills …
November 2017
: A Father’s Gratitude The life of a stay-at-home dad isn’t easy. It’s much more difficult than I imagined it would be. My …
November 2016
: Understanding God the Father I underestimated how impactful parenting would be on my spiritual life. I’ve found that nothing has …
August 2016
: The Joy of Two Children When Felicity arrived this Spring, I had just gotten a handle on how to deal with Benedict. Now a …
June 2016
: Inadequacies There are certain experiences that are universal to all parents. Children, regardless of culture and …
: God, Hell, and Timeouts One of the areas of parenting that I didn’t anticipate being uncomfortable with is timeouts. I …
May 2016
: Dad Life Lately I’ve developed a bit of an addiction to car care. I want our cars to last, so I try to wash …
April 2016
: Hopeful Anticipation I’m experiencing a noticeable difference between Alison’s first pregnancy and her second: I’m a lot …
: Be Silly Benedict’s favorite part of the work week happens on Thursday mornings at our library. He absolutely …
March 2016
: Being A True Servant Leader Servant leadership is a term that’s quite popular in management circles. It attempts to form leaders …
: Family Time Activities I love Spring. Nature reminds us of the joy and hope of new life and new growth and the season also …
: How Am I Doing As A Parent? I enjoy systems and stability. I like to learn how to do something, experiment to find the most …
: The Poor Box Every moment is a teachable moment in a child’s life. What your children don’t realize is that as a …
February 2016
: Pursing A Daughter’s Heart I wanted a girl. When the ultrasound confirmed it, I was elated. Her name is Felicity and she’s …
January 2016
: Parenting is Innate This blog post was originally intended to be a reflection on how the beauty of shared parenting …
: Minivans Earlier this year, Alison and I started discussing acquiring a minivan. We’ve been a one car family …
: Plus Two We’re nearing the half-way mark of Alison’s pregnancy. This has been a very quick ride (for me, at …
: Parenting Requires Daily Adjustments A few months ago, I was one confused dad. As a first time parent, all of the development stages in …
December 2015
: My Father’s Son My younger self would be very disappointed in me if he knew the truth. I like jazz. When I was in …
: Raising Wholesome Kids My goal in raising Benedict is that he grow into a wholesome, mature man worthy of a great woman. …
November 2015
: Giving Everything for Your Kids Love is a concept that’s been distorted and misunderstood. We all yearn to hear the words “I love …
October 2015
: Parenting: Exhilarating and Exhausting Now that more of my friends are getting married and having kids, my Facebook timeline, or whatever …
: Be Your Child’s Rock A father’s role in his children’s lives is unique. I’ve written before about how fathers are …
: The Gift of A Child’s Life Recently I’ve been looking back at old videos of Benedict. Man that kid was fat. What also strikes …
September 2015
: The Lynchpin of Education Throughout the course of my education, I have had hundreds of teachers. I can say that, to the best …
: The Surprises of Being A Stay-At-Home Parent Now that I’ve been a full-time caregiver to Benedict (read “stay-at-home parent”) for just over a …
July 2015
: Reinforce Family Values One of the most difficult challenges that parenting presents is passing on family values. If you …
: Kids Are Not A Burden Benedict has been sleeping less lately, meaning that he requires more entertainment during the day. …
: Be A Brave Parent Most days, I’m surprised that I’m a father. Certainly Benedict has been in my life for nearly two …
June 2015
: Be Emotionally Present Growing up, one of the staples of my day happened just before bed. As I lay in bed, my dad would …
: Dad the Driver Family road trips are the stuff of legend. Earlier this year, Alison, Benedict, and I rented a van …
May 2015
: Be Great, No Matter What Last Fall, I wrote about To Kill A Mockingbird and the great scene where Atticus explains to his …
: Am I Doing Enough? It’s been a year since I started caring for Benedict full time. It’s almost hard to believe not just …
April 2015
: You’re Irreplaceable One June evening in 1996, I was almost left without a father. My dad was deployed in Saudi Arabia …
: Be Aware of Your Example One of the books that I’ve read this year was Eat Mor Chikin: Inspire More People by Truett Cathy. …
: Praying for Kids Vocations A few weeks ago, Alison called me on her way home from the hospital. She was listening to Catholic …
: Giving All of You Earlier this year, Mark Hart from Life Teen was on Lino Rulli’s The Catholic Guy Show right after …
March 2015
: Read to Your Children A routine is perhaps the greatest tool in the toolbox of parenting. Kids do wonderfully with …
: Play with Your Kids As I look back on the pictures of Benedict from his first year of life, I’m suddenly very aware of …
: The World Needs Fathers We’re living in a very confusing time. For whatever reason, we’ve stopped seeing people as uniquely …
February 2015
: Our Diocese’s Best Kept Secret When you have a new baby, everything in the world is wonderful. A long 10 months of hopeful …
January 2015
: Showing Tenderness I love Benedict. I love the way he laughs uncontrollably as I hold his arms above his head and …
: Kids are Raised by the Community Mass has become a bit of a struggle. For whatever reason, I didn’t anticipate that Benedict would …
December 2014
: Time Management for Kids Kids today are operating under very tight time constraints. While the number of potential activities …
: Caring for A Sick Child There are many powerful acts of love and service. These acts force us into uncomfortable and …
November 2014
: Priorities Matter Our lives are full of priorities. Some things are simply more important than others. Making the …
October 2014
: Cherish Your Family The life of a family is one of seasons. There’s the season before a couple has children. There’s the …
: Spend One-on-One Time with Your Kids Growing up in a military family, my dad was constantly deployed. He’d be gone for 3-6 months at a …
: Making Time for Playtime Kids grow up too fast. As parents, we have the privilege of experiencing their daily growth. As a …
: Kids at Mass There’s an ongoing debate in the Catholic Church about what should be done with children who make …
: My Favorite Part of Fatherhood I love my son. He’s 11 months now and really knows how to get around. During the day, we have a few …
September 2014
: Dear Benedict, Live Purely Dear Benedict, I wanted to write you this letter because it’s my responsibility to help you grow …
August 2014
: Make Her A Hero Words have power. Words have the ability to build someone up or strike someone down. They have the …
: Lead Your Children by Example The responsibility of parenthood lies not so much in the direct instruction of children, but more so …
July 2014
: Deferring Your Wants We live in a microwave culture. We want everything, now. A major burden for new doctors is the size …
May 2014
: You’re the Servant of All The Pope has many titles. Perhaps most intriguing is “Servant of the Servants of God." This Papal …
: The Scariest Part of Being A Stay-at-Home Dad I’m about to embark on a new adventure and I’m both scared and excited at the same time. At the end …
: Withhold Nothing We’re called to be selfless in this culture of selfishness. Last Fall, as Alison and I were …
: Your Example at Mass It happens twice a year. Every Christmas and every Easter, without fail, our parishes are full of …
: Avoiding Awkward Sex Talks Does teaching your child about the mystery and gift of their human sexuality really have to be an …
April 2014
: Daily Family Prayer Now that then Lenten season is over, it’s important for us to remember that while the season is …
: 4 Myths About Parenting It’s truly sad how little we value children today. Modern couples are pressured and even praised for …
January 2014
: Avoiding Neglect We’re men. We’re hard charging. We’re all about getting stuff done. But how do you do that while not …
December 2013
: Children are Truly the Fruit My son is rapidly approaching the one month mark and the experience for me, as a father, has been …
October 2013
: Leaving A Legacy One of the strangest experiences I’ve ever had was seeing pictures of my parents when they were …
August 2013
: Children Are A Reward Each year, the Church celebrates Natural Family Planning (NFP) Awareness Week. We should all take …
: Results May Vary Don’t wait to get married to have sex, do it now! If you get pregnant, it’s not a baby until it is …
: Dad Smart One of the most interesting experiences for me in being a new dad is how I am starting to recall …
: 7 Things I Wish I Had Known About Pregnancy Becoming a parent for the first time is an amazing experience. I should warn you, though. You have …