Superfood Smoothie recipe of the week

  By Jon | September 2, 2015 - 12:49 pm |
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kale superfood smoothie

I got on the superfood thing a little late in the game, but I’ve been trying to eat healthier lately, because I think that being a healthy dad is being a better dad. One thing I’ve been trying is replacing my usual breakfast with a smoothie, using foods like kale, blueberries, avocado, spinach, and protein powder. Here’s a quick smoothie recipe that tastes great even if you don’t usually like green smoothies. 1 cup fresh kale leaves 1 cup fresh cubed pineapple (use canned in 100% juice if you need to) 1 medium sized banana 1/2 cup coconut milk 1 scoop protein powder (vanilla tastes best with this one) 1/2 to 1 cup of ice Blend all ingredients until it’s smooth and green. I can never get the kale leaves completely pureed, but I don’t care much. Drink up. Makes enough for two. Kids like it, too. Related Posts:Snapshots, special… read more →

#TBT quick post – Mommy’s book and Plae Shoes

  By Jon | August 27, 2015 - 12:13 pm |
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B holding up The Everything Kids' Learning Activities Book

A quick #TBT post for you. From 2013, here is B, our youngest, holding up his mommy’s book, The Everything Kids’ Learning Activities Book by Amanda Morin. We found it on the shelves at Barnes and Noble, or as B called it, “Bornes and Novel”. And check out those Plae Shoes, which I did a review of several years back. Boy, time flies. Related Posts:PLAE Shoes – Free Shipping Through November 30thGo PLAE – PLAE shoes review | Cool shoes, good for developing feetMusic Monday ramblings and updatesBook review – The Everything Kids’ Learning Activities Book by Amanda Morin

Transformers Rescue Bots Dino Island by Hasbro and PlayDate Digital – App Review

  By Jon | May 14, 2015 - 10:37 am |
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Transformers Rescue Bots Dino Island app menu

Transformers toys by Hasbro have been favorites of mine since I can remember, and my kids love them just as much. Transformers new characters for younger children are the Rescue Bots, which have rescue vehicle and dinosaur modes. All Autobots, no Decepticons here. I also loved the interactive story books with the accompanying record or cassette. You know, the ones that told you, “You’ll know it is time to turn the page when you hear the chimes ring like this…” Age reveal aside, the vinyl and tape interactive story books have now come back as apps for iPhone and iPad. Transformers Rescue Bots Dino Island by Hasbro and developer PlayDate Digital features Optimus Prime and Autobots Chase, Boulder, Heatwave and Blades. The Rescue Bots have been stolen away to a secret island by Colonel Quarry, and your child must help Professor Baranova and Frankie Green rescue them. PlayDate Digital interactive… read more →

Time to Mouse Up – Walt Disney World Tips from the latest Trip

  By Jon | February 27, 2015 - 10:25 am |
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epcot mission space monorail track

As this terrible Maine winter just got colder and it became harder and harder to miss our home away from home, it was clear it was time to Mouse Up. That’s right. My family packed up and went back to Walt Disney World. Tom Petty said the waiting is the hardest part, and he’s right. The kids were super excited and had been reading their Birnbaum’s books, making park bucket lists, looking over and over at pictures of the resort. Hell, my wife and I were making bucket lists of our own like a couple of kids. Our youngest turned his toy trains into a Walt Disney World monorail. We wanted it to be like the first time our family went in 2009, eager to recreate the magic of that visit. Our family had been twice since that trip, but we felt like we had two less-than-perfect vacations to make… read more →

Forefatherhood

  By Jon | November 5, 2014 - 8:17 pm |
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my grandfather and his parents

As I work on my family history, I often wonder about the people behind the names and dates. I unearth clues and dig up bones — figuratively, of course. But the vital records, census entries, immigration and military records only build a framework for my imagination. What were these people like? What did they think about, talk about, eat, play and dance like? I took a moment and thought of a small handful of facts that could describe me as a person: I like Steely Dan I’m not a picky eater I don’t sleep much I can’t parallel park Summer is my favorite season Steely Dan wasn’t around in the 19th century, but aside from that, how the hell would I know any of that stuff about my ancestors? Some people were written about, and still others have had their journals and diaries published. Most of my ancestors were poor… read more →

Snapshots, special needs, and being a #HealthyDad

  By Jon | October 10, 2014 - 10:36 am | ,
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apple picking a family tradition

Thanks to Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, who sponsored the campaign, for including dads in this important discussion about family health care. My views are based solely on my experience as a parent, and not as a medical professional. My wife and I used to talk about snapshots. Those are the frozen moments in time that we wanted to remember. They are pictures of reality that fit with our wishes and dreams, and when we saw them we had to capture them in our minds. There’s something unique about raising kids with special needs that never lets you forget those snapshots, and even remember them in different lights. In good times, you can’t seem to forget the difficult moments that you never thought you’d survive. And in the bad times, well, you always recall the good ones that keep you pushing forward. When your kid is falling apart and you… read more →

PVC projects to the rescue! Have a water fight!

  By Jon | August 31, 2014 - 11:56 am |
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PVC water cannons made with Instructables

PVC has always been fun for my boys and I to play with, and it came in really handy this last week of August in Maine, where the temperatures and humidity climbed quickly and we needed to find refuge from the heat. I remembered some Instructables I had seen, and together with a hack saw, miter box, rotary tool, some PVC, cement, and a few O-rings, dad and sons constructed a few water cannons to cool off with. Past PVC projects for this dad and sons have included a playhouse frame and some other structures. We also have a huge top-secret project going that I will most certainly blog about, but will not be finished until next summer. We’d also like to build a PVC trebuchet and a wicked PVC rocket launcher. Working with PVC is easy. It’s sturdy but fairly soft. If you don’t have PVC shears or some… read more →

Music Monday, still on a Tuesday – The North Pond Hermit songs

  By Jon | August 26, 2014 - 10:07 am |
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North Pond Hermit Maine woods in winter

As Wyldstyle proclaims in The LEGO Movie that the day of uprising against Lord Business will be known as “Freedom Friday, still on a Tuesday”, this Music Monday post is coming to you on, well, Tuesday. An article appeared on GQ recently about the man known as The North Pond Hermit from Central Maine, which is where I live. And on this subject, over the years, at least three Mainers that I know have written songs about the man. Christopher Knight walked into the woods of North Pond, Maine twenty seven years ago, and lived there in a tent since his capture this year. He spoke only one word to another person in that entire time. He never lit a fire, for fear that his location would be given away, and used only a standard camping tent for shelter. Anyone from Maine will tell you that winter in this state… read more →