Yesterday, and not planned, Niko and I went to 7 places. We had a wonderful time, and he is always great company. That morning, I had offered to take him to him to Rivercenter Mall or North Star Mall or to the movie theater for Inside Out 2 or the new Minions movie, but, he…
Tag: The Dad Speaks
Urban Air (again)
Niko has been asking for the past several weeks to visit Urban Air, and finally, yesterday, we were able to go. It’s not my favorite place in the world, but for Niko, seeing his happy smile and seeing jumping around makes it much better for me. This time, I brought a ticket for me and…
Painting and Babysitting
On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we had our bathrooms and kitchen painted. The person we hired had already done some other work for us in the past, and I trusted him and knew he could paint as he is “a jack of all trades.” I was not expecting him to bring his 10-year-old daughter with…
Father’s Day
Being a dad is the best thing I could’ve ever asked for, and I just love him so much. For the longest time, Nina would hang out with him in his bedroom until he fell asleep. But, for the past few weeks, I have been doing it every other day. It’s a drastic routine change…
Goodbye 2nd Grade and Hello Summer Break
On Thursday, Niko finished his last day of 2nd grade. That morning and before we got him to school, one of his baby teeth finally fell out! It was loose for a few weeks. It was funny because he woke up and I heard him say my tooth fell out, can you find it in…
Claw Crane
Yesterday, we didn’t sit around our house enjoying the cool a/c, we weren’t at my parents house, and we weren’t at a hotel. We were actually at the movies where the theater has an arcade, bowling lanes, and a cafe. Niko won three stuffed animals at the Claw Crane Machine! Yeah, I was impressed with…
Oh, What A Week (May 17 to May 24)
As I started writing this, it was looking like a TV series, so I decided to scratch everything I had written and try my best to keep it to a 30-second commercial! Our A/C was out, and eventually, we ended up with a whole new system! They replaced it on Thursday, May 23rd, and by…
Mothers Day Surprise
Originally, this was going to be titled, Ode To My Wife – Part 9 (Happy Mother’s Day), but that would’ve required me to actually think and write something super amazing about Nina, which is easy as she does so much for me, Niko, and Riley. But my thinking and writing part of my brain hasn’t…
Niko’s Birthday
Niko had a few requests for his birthday last Thursday, and we happily obliged. First, he wanted cupcakes and cookies to bring to school for his class. Thanks to HEB, the local grocery store as Nina picked up a few items along with cupcakes and cookies on Wednesday. Of course, when Niko came home from…
My Birthday Food
I think I need to rename thedadspeaks.com to thedadeats.com, because I love to eat! And, for my birthday, which was last Tuesday, I got Chinese food. But, before I dive into my fortune, let me tell you about Saturday, Sunday, and Monday and what I had to eat! So, pull up a chair and I…
Triple Birthday Celebration
Yesterday, we celebrated my dad’s 80th birthday which was last Tuesday, my birthday which is this coming Tuesday, and Niko’s which is May 2. Niko and I are less than 80! Normally, we would celebrate by going out to a restaurant, like we did for my mom’s in February. But, my dad had knee replacement…
Brick Fest Live
In January, and while I was scrolling through Facebook, I saw an advertisement for Brick Fest Live in San Antonio, TX scheduled for this weekend. Without even thinking or asking the family, I submitted my contact information so I could be alerted when tickets went on sale. Later, when I did tell Nina and Niko,…
Saturday Thoughts
Yesterday, we got our house cleaned from top to bottom. Unbeknownst to us, she made Niko’s bed and arranged all the pillows and blankets in a very nice layout rather than the what Niko prefers. And, what he prefers is very detailed and it takes Nina and I working together to get it correct. If…
IHOP Again…
Yesterday, I was planning on getting gas in Nina’s car and going to Goodwill to donate some stuff. Afterwards, Niko and I were going to do something fun in the world. I gave him several things to choose: UrbanAir, the museum we visited on 3/22 for his field trip, the children’s museum, North Star Mall,…
Field Trip
My name is Mark, and I survived the 2nd grade field trip on Friday to a local museum. I didn’t chew on any dinosaur bones, I didn’t take off my clothes and pose as an old timer from the old times, I didn’t push the red button in the space exhibit, I didn’t build a…
Spring Break 2024
Niko’s Spring Break was last week, and tomorrow he goes back to school. He won’t have anything exciting to tell his classmates or teacher of what he did and all the trouble he got it in on South Padre Island! Nope! Because, he was sick. He took one dose of meds on Monday and when…
Don’t Laugh (Because It’s Not Funny)
Last Saturday, Niko asked me very nicely if he could have my iPad that I purchased in December. His current iPad is my old iPad mini 4 that I purchased in 2020. I gave him that one about a year ago when the iPad he had, broke. I like my iPad and even have an…
Ear Infection
Last Sunday, and around our Niko dinner time which happens at 3 pm, he was complaining of his ear hurting. At first, we thought it was water as he had a shower a few hours earlier. None of the Google remedies worked for getting water out of ears, so I made a quick trip a…
Cheeseburger In Paradise (aka, Our House)
Yesterday, our big adventure in the world was a drive for burgers, fries, a shake for Niko, soda for me, and chicken tenders for Niko and me. I was craving something else and was planning on getting that. He then asked for a cheeseburger, and I was like, OK, come with me and it’s yours….
Niko Rewards
Yesterday, we went to The Shops at La Cantera, for lunch, legos, and chocolate. Separate, not food made out of legos. The reason being is Niko did something good for a month, and the reward for completion was we would buy him a lego set for $100. Actually, I won as I also participated, but…