Author Archives: Kevin Delp

Changing Your Life

My wife and I went to a co-worker’s wedding this past weekend. Besides the bride and groom (who were pretty preoccupied), we knew exactly one person at the wedding and reception, and although she was very nice, she was more interested in getting her date onto the dance floor. I can only do so much dancing before my repertoire of dance moves is rapidly exhausted, so we found ourselves sitting at a table with five couples who we had never met before and who we would never see again. We began talking politely with them (sure enough they all knew … Continue reading →

Makin’ the Bed

After breakfast this morning, I sent my son back to his room to make his bed. I started cleaning up the breakfast dishes, and by the time that I was done, I was somewhat surprised that he hadn’t finished making his bed. I walked back to see what the hold up was, when I heard grunting coming form his open door. I peeked through the open door to see what he was doing to exert himself so much. He was on all fours, holding his fitted sheet near one of the corners of the mattress. He gathered himself up and … Continue reading →

Dads and Makeovers

There are few things that a little girl likes more than playing dress up and doing makeovers. How could any dad resist spending time with his little girl in this fun way? Just be absolutely sure that there is no one around who might snap a picture of you while you look a little, well, ridiculous. Now if you are going to allow her to perform a make over on you, you can’t do this half heartedly. You might as well let her go the whole nine yards. Let her do the make up, let her mess up your hair, … Continue reading →

A Family Time Hike

I have mentioned before how important I think it is that Dads take the intiative in planning family bonding times. It doesn’t have to be elaborate but it has to be regularly done. With that said, here’s an idea for great family bonding. Plan a nature walk for your family to enjoy. You should try to find a path or a park that your kids aren’t familiar with. If you go to your customary park, the kids’ interest might wane, and you will generally find that their enthusiasm disappears. Even if you live in the biggest city, there is often … Continue reading →

The Ultimate “Dad Wins” Water Fight

Here’s a fun idea for you and your family to try before the end of summer for some good old fashioned family bonding. Get everyone into their bathing suits for a water fight and choose your caliber of water weapon. You could start very easily at the entry level with spray bottles (best for young children). This is a way that you can get each other moist, without getting totally soaked. If this is too tame for you, the next step up is a simple dime store squirt gun for everyone who is going to play. This will definitely add … Continue reading →

A Father’s Perspective on the Mom Thing

My wife got a summons to jury duty last month, and today was the day that she first reported to the court house. Now, I knew that this was coming for a month, so I had plenty of time to prepare for the solo act. I had hot dogs, fish sticks, and macaroni and cheese out the wazoo. What else would a dad taking care of five kids need while mom’s away? It should be simple, right? I mean I’ve taken care of all of them before. What could be so hard about doing it for the better part of … Continue reading →

Why Daddy? Dealing with Death

Yesterday, I started talking about dealing with death with your children. We experienced this first hand this week when one of our beloved turtles died. You can read the first part of this story here. I left off, with my son trying to ‘revive’ the turtles by warming up the water. . . In response to his idea about the larger turtle needing more warm water, I told him that we could try it, and that I hoped that it would work, but that I suspected that his turtle may have died. He accepted this as reasonable, (I think deep … Continue reading →

Dealing with Death

My children had to deal with a new, difficult experience this week. We had all gone out together on a family trip, and when we returned home, my son made a discovery that was going to be very disturbing to our children. He came out from his room, and told my wife and I that one of his turtles looked funny. My wife and I exchanged concerned glances. He has been the proud owner of two red eared slider turtles, but ever since we had bought them, one turtle had never eaten very much, nor had it grown at all. … Continue reading →

The Most Dangerous Game

My son is really into martial arts. He’s constantly spinning, jumping kicking, punching, and defeating imaginary foes. (I think they are usually Decepticons) When we finish a crate of eggs, I let him destroy the egg crate that they came in with kick, chops, and punches, as if it were a piece of wood or a block of cement. He must be Bruce Lee in his mind’s eye. Recently a new program debuted on the History Channel called Human Weapon. In it, two fighters travel around the world studying the traditional martial arts of the countries that they visit. After … Continue reading →

Indulgence

There are times in a man’s experience on the road of fatherhood when he must stop, take a deep breath, and count to ten before he loses his paternal cool. I had just such an experience a few moments ago. I had just finished putting the twins to bed, and I was anxious to go to the living room and watch the rest of MNF. To anyone out there who doesn’t know what MNF means, it stands for Monday Night Football. I had just sat down in the Living room and hadn’t even reached for the remote yet when my … Continue reading →