Here are a few photos from the recent camping/canoeing/fishing trip I took with my sons.
It was a great time. Had fun talking with them and hanging out, plus enjoying the beautiful scenery.
It’s become an annual event, a tradition of sorts – we go to the same place, get the same campsite. It’s a lot of fun.
What are some of your traditions with your kids? Or, ones you shared as a kid with your family? I’d love to hear from you. Please share in the comments section, below.
Have a great day!
(FYI – I had intended on posting this about a year-and-a-half ago when it actually happened, but didn’t have the video link. Just found it in my Drafts folder and added the video, so here ya go!)
The other day, we put together the launching kit for the boys’ model rockets that they got for Christmas. From there, it was off to find the right launching spot.
After explaining to the boys the need for some space to make this happen, and an unsuccessful stop on a dirt road that we noticed was marked private after walking around to scope out the location, we landed on a perfect spot. Then it was time to get these birds in the air. Here’s a look at the big moment(s).
Yes, those were multiple camera angles. As someone who has always worked with video for a living it was a must to do this Hollywood style. We had five cameras rolling and man, it was awesome to see those things take off. The boys were totally stoked! Part of me was actually surprised they launched, but it was great that they did. Mission accomplished.
We’ll have to do this again sometime. Would highly recommend it as a fun family activity!
So, my youngest son has learned how to use those wonderful little emoticon things in messages. His Dad only recently learned how to do this, thanks to a more iPhone savvy friend who was gracious enough to help.
I showed him how to set it up on his iPod last night.
Now I am getting messages like this one from my little guy…and apparently I’m going to have to procure plane fare to Antarctica as a result.
Gotta love technology 🙂
I remember it as a rite of passage of sorts when I was a kid…my first concert.
It’s been a long time but I can still recall how fun it was, and part of that fun was that I got to go with my Dad. Granted, I was a belligerent/trying to be independent teenager at the time and it was MC Hammer performing so I’m sure he wasn’t exactly thrilled about seeing the show – but it was a memorable experience regardless 🙂
Fast forward a few decades and that brought me to Winter Jam last night. This is a collection of 10 artists and is billed as a high quality, ministry-focused concert experience that is the world’s most attended winter tour. Judging by the crowd last night, I believe it. It was packed!
I wasn’t actually expecting the boys to be joining me but another day of school being cancelled due to Antarctica-esque weather meant they were going to be staying with me during the day today and so they met me at the arena about halfway through the show before spending the night.
They were so excited. Both of the boys were mainly interested in seeing Lecrae. He’s awesome…they’d heard him before on my iPod and were fired up to see him in person.
Needless to say, he did not disappoint. What a great show and on top of that, a great message.
Lecrae spoke several times about how he’s made some mistakes in his life, how he used to live a life he wasn’t too proud of, and how he didn’t deserve to be standing on the stage performing…but how God’s love and mercy has made all the difference in his life and has gotten him to where he is now.
My oldest son noticed that. He was asking me about it today and I could tell during our conversation the message got through to him. Happy Dad here. I am really hoping my boys don’t take some of the wrong turns I’ve taken in life in the past, and positive experiences like last night are real blessings to me as a father.
Seeing people like Lecrae on stage in front of a packed house, taking no credit for his success and having absolutely no ego was very cool. He was genuinely humble, which is something you almost never see from ‘celebrities’ these days.
If you have a chance, check out Winter Jam. There are still plenty of concert dates left on the schedule and it is a diverse lineup of artists and music types. It’s a lot of fun and you might even get something extra out of the experience in addition to the great music.
Those were the words I heard my seven-year-old son tell me someone had told him – after his older brother came into my room last night to let me know his little bro was sad and crying because of this.
It took me a good five minutes or so of asking him what was wrong and trying to let him know it was alright to talk about stuff like that, to get him to finally say that someone at school had in fact told him, ‘I don’t like you.’
Poor kid. I could tell he was struggling with it and it immediately made me think of how difficult in can be to deal with rejection or negative words said about you. That’s never a fun thing.
I asked him what led to this happening and he said when he went up to the kid to play with him at recess, that’s when the words were said. Turns out it had happened a couple of weeks ago but it was still bothering him. He’s a sensitive little fella, kinda like his Dad. Poor kid indeed…and knowing how I’d be dealing with it, I asked him if he was trying to figure out how to make the other kid like him. He said he was.
So I gave him the best fatherly advice I could think of (which probably wasn’t much, but I tried.) I told him, ‘Buddy…I’m sorry they said that to you. And you wanna know something? Unfortunately at different times and in different ways, people are going to tell you that throughout your life. But here’s the thing. Whenever someone tells you they don’t like you or puts you down like that – it’s because they wish they could be like you. It’s because they see something in you they don’t have. You’re a good kid and there’s no reason I could think of why anyone wouldn’t like you. So you forgive them for making you feel bad and hurting you, because that’s what Jesus did and it’s what God does for all of us whenever we mess things up. And you just keep smiling and keep being nice to them even if they’re not nice to you in return. God likes you and your family and the people who know you best like you, so don’t worry about making everyone like you because the truth is, not everyone will. But that’s ok. It doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with them but more importantly, there’s nothing wrong with you.’
By the time I’d finished rambling he was pretty sleepy, so I tucked him in and he went to sleep. Hopefully he felt at least a little better.
The only reason I’m posting this here is in case someone else out there might be struggling with rejection or the sting of harsh words that might have been said to you, either recently or perhaps a long time ago. It’s going to happen sometimes, it’s part of life. Just remember you are loved, you are wonderfully made, and you are perfectly likable – no matter what anyone who doesn’t think so or doesn’t stop long enough to realize might say 🙂
Have a great day, friends.
positively second 