This way everybody

As you can probably guess, we’re a bit geeked-up in the DFWdaddy household about the new exhibit opening at the Dallas Zoo. Giants of the Savanna is likely to supplant the Lacerte Family Children’s Zoo as our favorite stop each time we visit. TheKiddo™ loves elephants, giraffes, lions and just about any animal you can imagine. (Note to the Dallas Zoo: You need to update your map of the Children’s Zoo. It still shows the “Tot spot” play area online, and that doesn’t exist anymore.)

We were there last weekend, and took a peak at what’s under construction. This weekend, we’ll be back to enjoy the Member’s sneak preview.

Giants of the Savanna entrance

It officially opens on May 28th, and I think everyone will want to see it.

Hey, at least I’m posting something after a too long hiatus. So give me props for ending the drought if not entirely overcoming my procrastination tendencies where my beloved (and overly ignored) blog is concerned.

At least I have been adding photos to the flickr and twitter feeds frequently. I’m hoping those have kept you somewhat entertained.

I’m not here, however, to describe ad nauseam my foibles. I’m here to celebrate the women in my life (many of whom would be more than happy to expound upon my many faults). Make no mistake. Women have been, are, and always will be a powerful force in my life. And indeed in the life of every dad.

Mothers give us life. Moms have given us so much more.

They have taught us to tie shoes, read, walk, write, play, laugh, cry, love, hurt, and a thousand other things. They have fed us, clothed us, comforted us, punished us, and done the best they could to be good behavioral models. The impacts they have made are both minuscule and immeasurable.

My own mom deserves a lot of the praise for the man I am today. (But don’t you dare blame her for my faults. Do that, and you and I will have to step outside for a few words … )

She helped me see the power of creativity by urging me to play, daydream, read and explore the world around me from a very young age. She nudged me to question everything. She helped me understand that “life ain’t fair,” and I could survive it anyway. She showed me that love is more powerful than hate. And that nothing stings more than seeing disappointment in mom’s eyes even if she’d never say it.

I hope I spend the rest of my life honoring what she gave me by giving some of her wisdom to everyone I meet.

Sometimes our moms fail us. Sometimes we fail them. It happens. Life is a messy business, but it beats the alternative—hands down. And sometimes, the women who impact our lives aren’t our moms. They still deserve our love and respect. And thanks.

From TheBetterHalf® who has seen me on my very worst days and continues to love me in spite of myself to TheKiddo™ who makes each day a joy, I’m constantly surrounded by women who make my life better. Who make me better. Who inspire me to want to be even better tomorrow.

Perhaps that’s why I don’t find it such a big deal that I’m late posting a little something about Mother’s Day. Each and every day in my corner of BigD is an affirmation of how much the women in my life mean to me.

Don’t worry. Though I am late getting around to this blog post, I wasn’t late calling mom for Mother’s Day. I hope you weren’t either.

It's a daddy thing

Any Tom, Dick or Harry can be a father. All he needs is some healthy sperm and a woman willing to procreate with him.

It’s genetic. It’s natural. It’s simple. And it’s not enough.

Our children deserve more.

They deserve unconditional love and guidance. They deserve rules, structure and discipline. They deserve to have someone who is proud of them and wants them to succeed.

They deserve dads.

The distinction between a father and a dad may seem like a small semantic shift that is only to be found in a thesaurus. It’s not. It’s deeper. And it’s far from simple. Being a dad requires commitment, dedication and a selflessness that is all too tiring at times. Because it requires time—the one thing that work, bills and being an adult leaches from us each day.

Fathers are nothing more than sperm donors who may (or may not) provide some financial support. Dads have a much longer list of duties. It’s a list that grows exponentially longer as the children grow.

Dads work for the man all day, and then leave the stress, pressure and disappoint at the office in order to be present in the lives of their children.

Dads show up to little league games, dance recitals, practices, and parent-teacher meetings.

Dads take road trips to make the away games even when it conflicts with <insert favorite televised sporting event here>.

Dads make breakfast on the weekends just because they can.

Dads help with homework, and teach children how to throw, climb, fish, swim, grill a perfect steak and so many other things.

Dads hug for no reason other than it feels good, and sometimes because they need the hug more than anyone else.

Dads carry pink backpacks, purses, shopping bags, dolls and anything else their children are tired of lugging around but refuse to leave behind.

Dads worry, plan, hope and pray about every little thing—every single day. And rarely let anyone know.

Dads get up each and every day, put their pants on, roll their sleeves up, do whatever it takes to provide for their families, and finish the day knowing it was a good day because everyone is healthy, clothed and fed.

Dads do what has to be done. And expect nothing more than a smile and “I love you, daddy” for payment.

Be a dad. It will make the world an infinitely better place for us, for our children and for every generation to follow.

TheBetterHalf®, TheKiddo™ and I were over in Deep Ellum to stop at our favorite rib joint in Dallas—which now serves fried pies!

Insulin-coma inducing deliciousness at Baker's Ribs

After a filling meal of “Carne, Carne, Carne” requested by TheKiddo™ it was fun to wander around, check out the art, and listen to some live music. Will definitely be going back to the 17th Annual Deep Ellum Arts Festival. Perhaps we’ll see you there.

]]> http://dfwdaddy.com/wordpress/16th-annual-deep-ellum-arts-festival/feed/ 0 http://dfwdaddy.com/wordpress/its-hammering-time-with-all-due-respect-to-thing/ http://dfwdaddy.com/wordpress/its-hammering-time-with-all-due-respect-to-thing/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 07:00:40 +0000 Patrick West http://dfwdaddy.com/wordpress/?p=170

What we're building this week at Lowe's

Saturdays are special days for dads and their kids.

As dads, we hurtle ourselves out of bed every morning to confront whatever the day throws at us. Our jobs, whether it’s one we love or one we hate, all to often take us away from the people who matter most. We spend countless hours with folks who are virtual strangers instead of joyous days with the ones we know as well as we know ourselves. After toiling for untold hours all week long, we need the weekends to connect with the people we love.

To help me cope, there are three weekends of each month to which TheKiddo™ and I most look forward—because we get to play with hammers! The first weekend of the month is at Home Depot. The second and third weekends of the month are at Lowe’s.

I know, I know. It’s an attempt by these two monstrous corporations to brainwash our children. Lowe’s Build and Grow (from 10 to 11 a.m.) and Home Depot’s Kids Workshops (from 9 a.m. to Noon) are efforts to make our kids suggest destinations whenever we are in need of hammers, nails, plants or building ephemera. It’s a beautiful piece of “branding.”

I’ve spent most of my adult life working in advertising/marketing/communications. Building this sort of emotional expectation is brilliant. And effective. Every time we’re at either venue, TheKiddo™ wants to wander the store, look at the tools, and play with the plants in the garden center. As long as it’s fun, I’ll put up with the subtle efforts to indoctrinate TheKiddo™ into the consumer mindset.

Perhaps we’ll see you this weekend at Lowe’s as we build the jewelry holder just in time for Valentine’s Day. Or in a couple of weeks when we build the LoweBot. Or possibly even at Chik-fil-A after we’ve finished (but that’s a story for another post).

What we're building on the 27th

I’m starting to think I’m even more excited about this than TheKiddo™.

And that’s quite an accomplishment.

A new addition to my reading list

I stumbled across this book completely by accident, but the title definitely caught my attention.

Does Your Daughter Have Dad Hair? With TheKiddo™ being a young girl, that title is completely engaging. Happily, her curls hide a multitude of sins on my part, but it’s always obvious to me when she has dad hair.

Now, I don’t know if this book covers dad-hood in general or hair care specifically. I just know I have to check one out and see if it’s worth reading and/or buying.

If anyone has read it, feel free to share.

Harkness Tower at Yale University

So, this has nothing at all to do with being a daddy or Dallas, but I simply had to pass it along.

This video is far too cheesy for words, but it’s an interesting take on the admissions process and decision making at Yale.

Boola Boola

Lakeshore Learning Store

I’m not the crafty one in my relationship. And I’m confident that most dads can admit that very same fact. I’m positive all the dads I personally know would tell you their wives are much more craft oriented.

That being said, I’m not opposed to crafts—especially when TheKiddo™ enjoys them. In fact, crafts are a fun way to help TheKiddo™ learn because she wants to do it. She wants to be the one handling the materials, and making the decisions.

Lakeshore Learning Store is a great place to get crafty. They have free crafts for kids every Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. TheKiddo™ always enjoys cutting, and gluing, and scribbling, and coloring. And I’m sure she’s not the only one. Plus, once we’re done with the craft, she gets to run around a huge store full of educational materials. We can easily spend a couple of hours there, and have on several occasions.

Go ahead dads; get crafty. Your kids will enjoy it. To make it easy, Lakeshore Learning is located at 13846 N. Dallas Parkway.

The upcoming crafts include:

• Feb 13 – Future President’s Tie
• Feb 20 – Puzzle Me Frame
• Feb 27 – I Love to Read! Bookmark
• Mar 6 – Crazy Kaleidoscope
• Mar 13 – Pot O’ Gold Bank
• Mar 20 – Bird Feeder
• Mar 27 – My Puppet Pal

A bit earlier this year, I wrote about a braised brisket recipe that I love. As part of that, I suggested you need a good knife in the kitchen. I’m not alone in this. Type “How do I choose a good knife” in Google and you’ll receive damn near one million results. I know that’s not a good metric, but folks want this information.

For a good article on the topic, go here, or here, or here.

My favorite knife, as I mentioned in that earlier post, is made by Hammer Stahl. Their website, however, doesn’t match the level of craftsmanship in their knives. In fact, it sucks.

I think the best description of their site is found in something Gertrude Stein once wrote, “There is no there there.”

I’d tell you to go get one of their knives today, but that’s obviously easier said than done.

Pity. A great knife needs a better way for people to get it.

Borofsky's Hammering Man is the perfect icon for first Saturdays in Dallas

The first Saturday of February is a couple of days away, and I’m sure dads are looking for ideas. A couple of easy suggestions are Kids Workshops at Home Depot and Target First Saturday at The Nasher Sculpture Center. Both are free and fun. Two things that are high on our list of priorities.

Workshops begin at 9 a.m. at the Home Depot near you and end at Noon.

Target sponsored free admission to the Nasher is from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

TheKiddo™ always enjoys the hammers and the artwork. Maybe you’ll catch us at one or the other.