On the weekends, when Niko wakes up, he doesn’t immediately eat breakfast. He plops himself on the beanbag and proceeds to turn on the Switch 2 and is already in the “game zone”. While he doing that, his iPad is blasting YouTube Kids videos. Yeah, it’s hard to get him off of the screens, but…

Yesterday, Nina and I took Percy Jackson trick or treating, he even had a sword! It was a relatively easy costume as Niko already has some Camp Half Blood t-shirts and blue jeans. The only accessory we had to buy was the sword. Niko has been eating up the books as audio and lately, he…

For the past few weeks, and right at bedtime (around 7 pm), Niko gets tucked into bed and for a few minutes, he reads a book. Yeah, you heard that right! A physical book which is awesome and I love it. It’s so great seeing it as Nina and I will always encourage it. I…

Last Saturday, it was our 16th wedding anniversary and we never got the chance to “dine out” as we had a sick and tired son who had no appetite for going out. Somehow, on Sunday, he felt better and after I got back from my morning walk, he found a place he wanted to dine…

Yesterday, Nina and I celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary, and we were planning on going out for lunch somewhere, but we had to put those plans on hold as Niko was extremely tired and not feeling well, and didn’t want to go out. I was also tired, and was disappointed, but I understood. We will…

On Friday, Niko really wanted a club sandwich from the Lake Cafe. The Lake Cafe is a local restaurant, and a few weeks ago, Gordon Ramsey was doing some filming there for a new untitled show. The Lake Cafe has been a frequent stop for Niko and I. It’s American food, and they serve breakfast,…

On Friday, I sent my iPad to Apple for a trade-in. Had I known we would be going to the Apple Store on Saturday to trade-in Niko’s old iPhone 11 Pro (which was mine and it was also Nina’s) and Apple Watch series 9 (my old watch as I purchased an SE 3 in March),…

Yesterday, and finally, we got the “mama mobile” detailed inside and outside. I had wanted to get it done before I drove from Texas to Minnesota last June, but that never happened. It was in dire need of a strong vacuum and a really good scrubbing. I can’t tell you how many bottle caps I…

Well, Niko has completed six days of school. And, so far, everything is going well in the mornings (despite waking up at 6 am). I am the first one awake, and will wake up Niko, by opening his door and allowing the cat to jump on his bed. Most nights, the cat sleeps in my…

Last Wednesday and Thursday were the first two days of school for my 5th grader. He goes back on Tuesday. Start easy! I like that! It was funny because last Tuesday, Niko was craving a cheeseburger and wanted me to take him to a local nearby restaurant for it. First, I was working, and second,…

Thirty-six days of completed writing prompts for me., and I am absolutely loving it. I only write for 5 or 10 minutes. This was my prompt for August 26: Day 32: Describe a memorable trip. Yesterday, Nina and I took Niko to the Great Wolf Lodge in Bloomington, MN (about an hour from us). Niko…

Yesterday, in the middle of the afternoon, Niko made an announcement, “I AM BORED.” To counter that, I offered several things for us to do, and he turned them all down. Most of my dad suggestions were things to do outside, as it was an absolutely perfect day (we had windows open and a/c off)….

A few weeks ago, my dad shared 365 writing prompts on his YouTube page: Thoughts from an Old Man, and I was intrigued and wanted to see if this is something I can do for a year. Well, I am doing it, and enjoying it. I don’t spend a lot of time on them (maybe…

Since we came back from San Antonio in June, Niko’s sleep schedule has been really messed up. In the evenings, he gets up several times for a pee, a drink, a snack, or just to complain about something. Because of that, he wakes up later. I thought it was a phase, and we could get…

Please don’t ask me which superheroes are DC and which are Marvel, because I have no clue. I have seen some of the movies and do enjoy them, I just have a very short attention span in the evenings and weekends, and would much rather read a book. When they are in the background, I…

The dad doesn’t often get the chance to wonder the aisles and browse all the fun things that Trader Joe’s has to offer. The majority of his visits are with his son (whom is 10-years-old), and it’s a quick 5 minutes for a grab n go! But, yesterday, the dad had a solo excursion in…

On July 6th, Nina and I swapped rooms. The furniture movement of beds and dressers went very well, and that night, we were both sleeping in new rooms. A few days later, Niko wanted to swap rooms with me, and I told him, yes, we can do it, but please give me a few weeks…

Sometimes, in the evenings and as Niko is preparing for bed, he will read thedadspeaks.com (hey, that is me!). He reads them silently, I read them to him, or we have the AI voice read them and he laughs a a lot. Last month, he told me I should I write a new The Dad…

I don’t consider myself handy, but this weekend, I fixed a slow draining sink in one of the bathrooms, I built an an IKEA wardrobe for Nina (she helped), and I figured out where an annoying beeping from the garage was coming from (it was the backup battery in the garage door ceiling mount). For…

School has been out for almost a month, and Niko’s bedtime has changed from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm. However, since we visited San Antonio on June 9th through June 12th, that bedtime hasn’t been achieved yet (well, I think once, he was able to do it). We get him in bed at 7:30 and…