DadVersions: Because You Deserve 15 Minutes To Yourself

Dadversions is our weekly contribution to keeping you sane. Every week we are going to collect our favorite random links that we think you will appreciate. So put the kids to bed, sit back and enjoy. You deserve it! Please be advised that you will be linking out to other sites that may be not suitable for work (NSFW) because of language or basic cable level of debauchery (what else would you expect from us), but we try to keep things pretty PG-15 here at StuntDad.

Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

Dad Related Links:

Dad Makes Star Wars VII Sequel Starring His Kids: Check out this awesome Star Wars VII sequel that a father made starring his own kids. It features some really great special effects, including an iPhone hologram device and lightsaber duel. And to think, I was excited that I made pancakes for my son on Saturday morning. Crap, I need to step things up.

Military Dad Makes Toddler Most Amazing Bedtime Video: A deployed military dad pre-recorded himself reading bedtime stories to his 2-year-old daughter. Performing Farmer Mickey, the dad does such a great job that his sweet daughter may or may not understand that the exchange isn't in real time.

The Other F Word: This revealing and touching film asks what happens when a generation's ultimate anti-authoritarians -- punk rockers -- become society's ultimate authorities -- dads. With a large chorus of punk rock's leading men - Blink-182's Mark Hoppus, Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea, Rise Against's Tim McIlrath - THE OTHER F WORD follows Jim Lindberg, a 20-year veteran of the skate punk band Pennywise, on his hysterical and moving journey from belting his band's anthem "F--k Authority," to embracing his ultimately authoritarian role in mid-life: fatherhood.

Random Links:

Dare to Fight: Improv in Toronto staged an improv prank in which a lone ninja with a “fight me” sign baited passersby to fight him with a foam sword. Pedestrians who took up the challenge found themselves fighting not just the lone ninja but his concealed army of ninja comrades.

15(ish) Things Worth Knowing About Coffee: A poster containing entertaining stats and facts that most of the world never knew about coffee. Great tidbits to know and share during the upcoming holiday party season!

Lucky Charms Cereal Sifter: Another feeble box of Lucky Charms cereal? No problem, create that most excellent bowl with charms in every bite with this Charms Sifter. The holes are sized to catch most charms, you should be able to sift 90% of them. Your Kids will think you are a Breakfast God.

Craigslist Dating: 1 in 5 relationships start online.For those nights when that one point of compatibility is the only one that matters.

Question of The Week:

From videos to posters to food dispensers, this week's Dadversions theme is: Creativity. Anyone can be creative at any age in any location and at any given moment. Have you gotten your Creativity on recently? If so, please share!

Pin It Now!

Stunt DARE: Make Your Own Awkward Family Photo

With Halloween just 48 hours from the grave and the holidays approaching, it's time to start planning a holiday card family photo. But instead of struggling to make everything perfect this year, lets take this mofo in the other direction and get freaky. Is Tommy hitting Sally? Perfect! Is everyone smiling except daddy? Even better! Is mommy dressed as slave Princess Leah (you remember the gold bikini)? Well done my friend!!

Your awkward family photo will spread joy and laughter throughout the years. So if you are ready to take on this Dare surf on over to AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com and get yourself some motivation. Be prepared, the bar has been set pretty high. We've also included some of our personal favorites:

There are a couple of other great sites with some amazingly awkward family photos:

• Failfamily.com captures all of the moments that others would probably like to forget. I especially like this one:

• And here are a couple of other random sites that have collected some great pictures, Freshpics.com and Buzzinn.net. While this photo is not exactly a holiday photo, I believe that this walrus has a present for the family:

• And this one doesn't fall into awkward, we thought it was just too damned cool to now share with you. This guy got his family to dress up as zombie hunters and took pictures oft them in action (including actual zombies). Well played sir. Well played

And to sweetened the deal, once you have accomplished the dare, if you share your masterpiece with the Stunt Dad Nation, we'll put it on our Dare Wall and make you a card carrying member of Stunt Dad.

Decipher for yourself the line between WTF and WOW!

Pin It Now!

Honorary Stunt Dad: Rube Golderg

As a kid I was introduced to the joy of Rube Goldberg contraptions through cartoons. Episodes of Tom & Jerry, Bugs Bunny, and Road Runner all incorporated wacky, obfuscating Rube Goldberg machines that would ultimately lead to our respective villain being flattened like a pancake or blown to smithereens.

I'm happy to discover my oldest son is a chip off the old block and also a Rube Goldberg fan. But as with most things these days, our children are able to enjoy much richer content at higher fidelity than we did some 10, 20, er, um 30 years ago. Was it really 30 years ago? I still struggle with new math.

Anyway, my son spends hours watching Rube Goldberg contraptions on YouTube. Forget plots of revenge and wasted minutes on chase scenes, he just wants to watch the magic of objects performing tasks they were NOT designed to do in the most ridiculously complicated, inventive and silly ways possible. And when it comes to building them ourselves, we have plenty of marble tubes, Thomas Trains, Hot Wheel tracks, Legos and bubble machines to make up dozens of complicated scenarios to turn the light switch from on to off.

I highly recommend sitting down with your little one(s) and building your own Rube Goldberg machine. Maybe make it turn the lights off, the radio on, or get the old man a beer. For inspiration you can check out these choice selections now playing on YouTube. I would have made one myself and recorded it in action, but it takes a really long time and so I wrote this article instead.

My favorite homemade Rube Goldberg video on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RouXygRcRC4


No modern day mention of Rube Goldberg can go without the OK GO music video "This Too Shall Pass" http://youtu.be/qybUFnY7Y8w


Honda used the idea of Rube Goldberg machine in an advertisement for their new Honda Accord.
http://youtu.be/_ve4M4UsJQo


To learn more about the man who did a short stint as an engineer for the San Francisco Water and Sewer Department, was a sports cartoonist, created several cartoon series and created the art of overly complicated comical inventions that would later bear his name; visit the Wikipedia entry on Rube Goldberg.

Have you created your own Rube Goldberg at home? We would love to see it and post it on Stuntdad.com. Upload the video to YouTube and fill out this form to submit it to Stunt Dad HQ.


Pin It Now!

Munch's Hunches: NFL Week 8

Greetings StuntDad Nation and welcome to Week 8 of the NFL 2011 season.

Can two Raider quarterbacks throw 3 interceptions each, in the same game? Has Warners Bros. started casting for the soon-to-be made movie: "The Legend of Tim Tebow"? Did zero NFL teams not showing up to see his workout really drive Terrell Owens to attempt suicide?

Munch must have let his success in Week 6 go to his head, because he laid a big ol' goose egg in Week 7, which cost us an unfriendly visit from our bookie. Little did I know, Munch had made a hefty side bet on whether Chris Johnson would rush for more than 20 yards. After the loan shark left, taking Munch's brand new dump truck in the process to "cover the juice," Munch mumbled something that sounded like, "It was a sure thing, Dad." This became my first opportunity for a teachable moment. I explained to him that the only sure things in the NFL are: athletes with more gold teeth will always let you down and the Chicago Bears will always screw up their first round draft pick.

The Saturday Stuntline is shaping up as...

The Early Game

• Match-Up: Minnesota (1-6) at Carolina (2-5)
• Preview: Let's face it, the early games stink this week. 3 teams are winless, and 3 others only have 1 win. The lone bright spot in the first 6 is what's happening in Carolina as we travel down south to focus on one of the season's biggest surprises. Cam Newton has been the most scrutinized quarterback in history and has shut up every critic since Week 1. He has over 2,000 yards passing, including 3 games of +300 or more . He has already tied the record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback as a rookie (7). And, he is on pace to be the first quarterback since Jim Plunkett (1970) to have won the Heisman Trophy and not completely sucked. (I Stunt Dare you to argue this). It's crazy to think that Adrian Peterson won't be the best football player on this field, but if you were starting a football team tomorrow, would you rather have A-Pete or the Chosen One? 
• Munch's Hunch: My favorite fruit is Fig Newton. Go Panthers!
• StuntDad Diatribe: Right, and strawberry pop-tarts are MY favorite fruit, Kid. But, speaking of food, Adrian Peterson will man up and carve up a defense that has more holes in it than a doughnut shop. Mmmmmm, doughnuts. Look for A-Pete to score 3x and Christian Ponder to make everyone forget about the Donovan McNabb debacle. Cam Newton will light up the Vikes secondary and easily surpass 300 yards and Steve Smith will get his +100, but it won't be enough in this week's Super Stud Showdown Bowl. Vikings dunk the Cats 24-21.

The Late Game

• Match-Up: Detroit (4-2) at Denver (2-4)
• Preview: No city is more excited for Sunday than Denver, as they get to watch Timmy's first start of the season. Tebow-mania is at an all-time high and I can already think of the next great NFL drinking game: every time the cameras show a Bible passage relating to Tim Tebow,  one must take a shot! And speaking of shots, is anyone more excited to see Tim Tebow than Ndamukong Suh? Suh's been taking a lot of heat in the media this week for his face-mask take down and taunting of Matty Ice this past Sunday, so what better way to release a caged animal's anger and frustration than with fresh meat?
• Munch's Hunch: Kings of the jungle. RAAAARRR! Go Lions!
• StuntDad Diatribe: Taking the easy way out, Kid? I don't blame you. Detroit has lost two in a row, but the losing streak ends at Mile High. Matt Stafford will have a monster day and lead an air assault on a poor Denver defense. Megatron will add 2 more scores to his league leading touchdown total and the D-Line will have Tebow running scared all day. When I look at this match-up I see Tebow vs. Suh. Good vs. Evil. Superhero vs. Villain. I usually don't like to watch blow-outs, but it will be fun to watch  in this week's Comic Book Bowl. Detroit crushes Denver 44-17.

The Night Game

• Match-Up: Dallas (3-3) at Philadelphia (2-4)
• Preview: These teams are better than their records and while its still early in the season, the loser of this game could find themselves in trouble, especially Philly. The Eagles are desperate for a win. Last year in Week 5, the Eagles needed a prime-time performance from Michael Vick in a prime-time game against the Redskins. Vick responded with 6 touchdowns, 5 in the first half. In another big-time performance, DeMarco Murray went off last week with 250 yards against the Rams, and should have another stellar game against an Eagle run defense that is giving up +120 yards a game. POP-QUIZ: only two other Cowboys have rushed for more than 200 yards in a game, can you name them?   
• Munch's Hunch: Who let the dogs out, woof-woof-woof-woof. Go Eagles!
• StuntDad Diatribe: Like the rest of the world, I see that winning cures all as the Canine Killer appears to be back in your good graces, Kid. Might I remind you that just a year ago, you wore a "Neuter #7" onesie when they came to Chicago last year. The only dogs being let out is going to be the Cowboy defense that will chase down and destroy Michael Vick. Philly's 12 consecutive wins after a bye-week comes to a screeching halt. And then we get to witness another Fan-Frenzy-Freak-Out by the Freaks in Philly. Look for fans to throw beers, brats, and batteries onto the field after their beloved Dream Team falls to 2-5. WEEEOOOWWWWWW!!!! Dallas sneaks out of town 31-28. 

Now, we turn to StuntDad Nation on your thoughts on these and other games from around the league. 

Likes, dislikes, hits, & misses?

Pin It Now!

There’s No Place Like...Children’s Place

When Munch was born, we spared no expense. Truth be told, it happened before he was born—long before.

On August 30th, 2009, we found out Wifey was 6 weeks pregnant. On August 31st, we were at Buy Buy Baby. It happened that quick, and by it, I'm referring to the spending.

And, while the spending hasn't stopped, we've definitely managed to contain it.

But—he was our first. And who doesn't spend their life savings on showering their first born with over-priced clothes? You're probably thinking about that $25 embroidered onesie you bought for your little one. Or, the $45 dress that was too-adorabley-cute-not-to-buy that she wore just once.

Go ahead, smile, you know you did. Well, my friend, you are not alone. I'm one of the most cost-conscious dads out there, yet I still paid $32 for a Jungle Jam Elephant Sleeping Bag. For the first few months of his life, he was a walking billboard for our favorite Chicago infant clothing stores:

- Giggle

- Bullfrogs & Butterflies
- Little Threads

Surely, it was completely normal to spend $40 on an Alpaca Mouse Hat when the kid hates anything that goes on his head. And, why shouldn't I have spent $50 on his first Chuck Taylors that he grew out of in a month?

Because there is a place. A beautiful place. With beautiful clothes. And beautiful prices. A place so beautiful that onesies are under $2, dresses are under $5, shoes under $10, and you simply just can't get enough. This place is....THE CHILDREN’S PLACE.

I’m not sure how Wifey stumbled upon this magical world of cost savings, but I do give a slight nod to the Shopping Gods whenever I see Munch in his latest $9.99 OUTFIT (meaning a top AND a bottom). In fact, we got 3 sleep stretchies for $4.99 a piece. I know what you're thinking Dads, "Impossible! Not a chance!" And yet, it's true. So wonderfully and blissfully true. 

Munch grew so quick as a newborn that if we got him to get at least one wear out of a $50.00 outfit from Janie and Jack before he outgrew it, we considered it a win. Now, if it doesn’t come from clearance or cost less than $15, we don’t buy it. We’ve saved so much $$$ and the kid still looks adorable. Llet’s face it, you could put a garbage bag on 90% of the kids out there for their first year and you’d still get oohs and ahs. Oh, the wisdom one gets after six months of having a child. 

So, for those of you who are prospectin', preparin', or plannin' for parenthood, here's a Wardrobe Tip: at their age, spend smarter, not harder, Stunt Dad Nation.

Anyone else know of some cheap, err, cost-effective children clothing stores?

Pin It Now!

Save Time Shopping for Groceries by NOT Shopping for Groceries

Struggling to keep up with all the chores and get a full 3 hours of sleep every night between feedings? Start shopping online! We started using Peapod and reaped these Stuntastic benefits.

Stuntastic Benefits
1. Shop in your underwear. While the little ones are napping, at school or playing in the backyard, you can get the weeks grocery shopping checked off the to do list. Even better, get the iPhone app and shop while you ride the train to work. Extra points if you do it in your underwear.

2. Get a weeks worth of groceries in 5 minutes with lists. Peapod lets you store lists that make loading up your virtual shopping cart as easy as clicking a button! I got lists. I got "Friends coming over", "Dinner for the In-laws", "Wife taking kids to her sister for the weekend" (aka, pizza and beer), and "Flat broke". With a single click everything I need for the week pops up and I can select quantities, click buy and be DONE.

3. Sort by price, sales or size to make finding what you want quick and easy. I like sorting by the unit price to get a true comparison.

4. No chasing your little ones throughout the store and watching them tip a tower of jelly in aisle 6. Use your spare time to take them to the playground to get out that excess energy.

5. Watch someone else load your groceries from the truck to your kitchen. Again, extra points if you do it in your underwear. (Is this underwear thing getting weird?)

6. Free bubbles. Our usual driver brings stickers and bubbles for the kids and has become a part of the family. He's awesome. He brings food. Saves time. And even has tips on how to cook the pork chops. Still hoping he will take it to the next level and cook it too!

All in all, using Peapod saves time and gives you more time for your family. We've been happy with the produce and it doesn't cost as much as you think. We even did a price comparison test. We took a Peapod receipt and went to our local store. While many items differed in price the overall bill including delivery fee came within 10 bucks of the local stores total. Not bad for shaving a few hours off the weekly chores and not having to take the little one down the cereal isle.

Pin It Now!

The Science of Trick or Treat

The good folks at MyScienceProject.org have done the research to make sure that daddy is a hero when it comes to selecting the right container for collecting the ultimate sugar haul on Halloween (because we all know the one who dies with the most candy wins).

These highly educated sugarologists have done the computations and calculations to figure out that a five gallon bucket can hold 675 pieces of candy and will weigh up to 20 lbs when full. And for those old school trick or treaters looking to score the motherlode they have projected that the good ol' pillowcase will bring in 1,690 pieces weighing up to 47 lbs.

MyScienceProject.org also details how many houses to hit in order to fill each different container to the brim complete with square mile calculations for the average suburban neighborhood. As well as provide insight into selecting the properly inhabited neighborhood. Check out the details here.

TIP: Start training now with a 10 lb bag for a mile and work yourself up to 47 lbs over the coarse of 11 miles. But don't worry, you can ride a sugar buzz the whole way.

So what are you planning to give the kids to capture their candy cache this year? A standard plastic pumpkin? Are you trying to be pillowsack worthy? Or what about taking it to the next level and just bring a wheelbarrow? Let us know.

Pin It Now!

Tricks and Treat: A Stunt Dad's Guide to Passing Out Candy

One of the often overlooked parts of Halloween is the actual tricking and treating. As a homeowner, you will probably have on average 50 to 200 little monsters ringing your bell. Do you have a game plan? Here are a couple of tips to properly trick and treat:

Tricks

• McDonald's Applications
  What better way to wake these little ghouls up to the realities of the current economy than passing out McDonald's job applications. "Trick or Treat. Give me something good to eat." I'll do one better. I will give you a place where you can get something good to eat every day during the state required lunch times... McDonalds. Give a kid a fish, he eats for a day. Give a kid a McDonald's application and he eats for a lifetime!
  
• White Elephant Giveaway
  Do have some old stuff around the house that you have been meaning to get rid of? Well guess what, you are going to be having a free removal service ringing the door bell any moment now. Just think of the possibilities. That garbage bag of old clothes... I guess little Iron Man is getting a new cardigan. And Snow White is getting your collection of old Sports Illustrated VHS tapes. Harry Potter is now the new owner of two broken printers that you have been keeping around since college. It is a win win situation. The kids get a lesson on the ramifications of door-to-door begging and you get to remove some "non-essential" items from your house.

Treats

• No Smarties!
  The Smartie is the candyworld's slow cousin. This poorly decorated sugar cube is a sad representation of you, your family, and quite frankly your manhood. Houses that give out Smarties should be made to paint a huge scarlet S on their front door so no respectable person ever associates with them.
  
• Big Ideas Get Big Bars
  Don't be the neighborhood King Sized Snickers Slut that just gives out big bars to anybody that comes to the door. Make them earn the big bar. If it looks like a kid has put some effort into his or her costume, then justly reward them with 3.29oz of gooey goodness (that probably doesn't sound right, but you know what I mean). On the other hand, if some kid in a store-bought mask shows up, take this as an opportunity to teach little Johnny Half-Ass an important life lesson....effort matters.
  
• A Cold One For The Old Man
  It goes without saying that trick or treating is not just for the little ones. It is also a great night for dads. What other night do you get to walk around your neighborhood dressed in a costume going door to door asking for food? (Well there was that April 16th a couple of years ago, but no charges were filed, so I don't think I need to go into that). Anyway, make sure that you reward the men that make the effort to take the little ones out by offering them a cold beverage. Keep a cooler of beer and soda by the door. When pops comes up with the kids, offer dad a beer. You will be the hit of the neighborhood and maybe, just maybe, you will find a new friend (or at least somebody you can call when you need to move heavy objects).

Do you have any suggestions? Let us know!



- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog.

Pin It Now!

Stunt Dad Approved Halloween Books

With Halloween fast approaching, I thought I would recommend a couple of my favorite Halloween books for the little ones. These books range from the silly to the weird..and my little monsters wouldn't have it any other way. Here is the list of books with the Amazon description included:

The Haunted School Bus by Lisa Trumbauer and Jannie Ho
Of course children know about the big yellow school bus…but have they ever heard about thehaunted ghoul bus? It’s wilder and way cooler, with a Mutant Mummy driver and a menagerie of monster passengers. But one Halloween day someone else gets on board by mistake: a normal little boy. Soon he’s taking a ride with a furry werewolf, a skeleton whose rickety bones go clitter-clatter, a grinning pumpkin head, a swirl of bats, and a friendly witch named Dolores.Told in fun and appealing rhyme, and featuring holiday-bright illustrations of a cast of unforgettable characters, this playful picture book has sturdy cardstock pages and embossing throughout. It’s perfect for celebrating a (not too) scary Halloween. Kids will want the ghoul bus to come to their neighborhood, too!

Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex

Goodnight monsters everywhere, in this parody romp with its own special twist! “Goodnight tomb. Goodnight goon. Goodnight Martians taking over the moon.”
It’s bedtime in the cold gray tomb with a black lagoon, and two slimy claws, and a couple of jaws, and a skull and a shoe and a pot full of goo. But as a little werewolf settles down, in comes the Goon determined at all costs to run amok and not let any monster have his rest.
A beloved classic gets a kind-hearted send up in this utterly monsterized parody; energetic art and a hilarious text will have kids begging to read this again and again.

Where's My Mummy by Caroline Crimmy
Little Baby Mummy wants just one more game of hide-and-shriek with Big Mama Mummy before bedtime. The night is deep and dark, full of friendly creatures that click their clacky teeth and whoosh past on flippy-floppy wings. But who will comfort Little Baby Mummy if a small, scritchy-scratchy someone gives him a scare? Big Mama Mummy, of course! Fresh, comical illustrations complement this everso- slightly suspenseful story with a satisfying ending.

Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich by Adam Rex

Being a monster isn't all frightening villagers and sucking blood. Monsters have their trials, too. Poor Frankenstein's cupboard is bare, Wolfman is in need of some household help, and it's best not to get started on Dracula’s hygiene issues. What could be scarier?Nineteen hilarious poems delve into the secret lives of the Creature from the Black Lagoon, Bigfoot, Godzilla, and others.

I'm Looking For a Monster by Tim Young
IN THIS POP-UP NOVELTY BOOK one little boy is looking for a monster. But not just any monster! Big, small, furry, horned, scaly, and feathery monsters all file through one by one, until finally our little boy finds the one he wants. Tabs, wheels, and gate-fold pages make for interactive fun! Tim Young’s wacky menagerie of monsters is illustrated in silhouette against brightly colored backgrounds and literally pops off the page in a variety of fun novelty elements.

Do you have a favorite Halloween book that you read with your little monsters? Let us know.

Pin It Now!

APP of the Week: Spin Art

In previous posts we have mentioned how kids like the box more than the contents, or that household items get more playtime than expensive toys. The same seems to apply to apps. I'm not sure who the intended audience for Spin Art was...but I can tell you it is loved by kids!! And what is not to love? You select a shape and spin it by swiping your finger across the screen. The faster you swipe, the faster it spins. Then you select colors and make a mess!! The paint splatters and the more you move your finger along the canvas, the more it piles on and makes art reminiscent of the old SpiroGraph. What you don't remember SpiroGraph? Click here to walk down memory lane, then buy the Spin Art app. It's all the fun of SpiroGraph but no mess and always in your pocket. Whaaaaaaaat? SpiroGraph in your pocket? That's Stuntastic!


- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog. Pin It Now!

I Vant to UnSuck Your Pictures. Ah Ah Ah.

With Halloween approaching you are going to be spending some quality time with your camera. Fortunately the good people at Kodak have provided 10 quick tips to unsuck your pics.

After you get that perfect shot of your perfect little ones, you can take it to the next level in post.

For beginners I recommend Picnik. Upload your picture and then go to the featured effects. Add vampire eyes, fangs or blood stains with the click of a button.

For pros with Photoshop check out these tutorials by Naldz Graphics to make a truly unique a petrifying image.




- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog.

Pin It Now!

Judge, Jury and Stuntecutioner: Wave at the Bus Dad

The Case: The People vs. Wave at the Bus Dad

The Charge: Cruel and unusual parentry

The Evidence:

In early 2010, Dale Prince learned that his son's bus route was changing and that it would actually be going past their house every day. Like any reasonable person, his first thought was "How can I use this to embarrass my son?". The answer... every morning he sees his son off to school by waving at the bus... dressed in a costume. Not only does he do this every morning, he makes it his mission to ensure that no two costumes are the same. As expected, when there is a grown man dressed in a mermaid costume, Dale has gained a bit of national attention. Which I am sure his son loves.

For over 170 school days, Dale has documented his full line of costumes on his site. These getups range from ninja to birthday suit (And no, he is not waving at the school bus naked. I am sure that is a different father down the street.) Here are a couple of examples for your consideration:

• Ariel
• Super Dad
• Nacho Cheese
• Terry Potter
• Batman and the Boy Wonder

The Prosecution:

Good people of the courtroom, I ask you not whether Mr. Prince is a good father, I ask you whether or not this is the activity of a sane and reasonable man. Sure, Mr. Prince is clever and seems to be a fun guy, but is this really the type of example that you want to set for your child. Shouldn't Mr. Prince try being a better member of the community? Maybe instead of spending the time gathering costumes, he could be volunteering his time for a worthy cause? Or perhaps volunteering for the local Neighborhood Watch on the lookout for the weirdo in the neighborhood that dresses up in costumes and waves at underage children... that way he could kill two birds with one stone. I argue that Mr. Prince is more of a public nuisance than a positive influence.

The Defense:

What the prosecution is clearly overlooking is the bond that is being created between Mr. Prince and his son. Sure, it is an unorthadox approach, but his son will have a memory that no other child will have. In a country where almost 26% of households have no father figure in them, are we to judge a man who not only wants to be a part of his son's life, but goes so far to make every day special and memorable for his son? I say that is no country I want to be a part of. I think the efforts of Mr. Prince are to be praised. I say if the mermaid costume fits, you must acquits.

The Verdict:

After weighing the evidence before me, I rule the accused... not guilty. How can you not support a man that just wants to torment his son a little. It could be worse—he could be like half of the dads I grew up with that show up at school drunk, yelling slurs, and reliving the glory days of Junior Varsity Football. As much as the kid probably hates it, this will be a bond that he will have with his dad for the rest of his life. I need to start planning how I can top this.

Stuntecution: Unneeded

Make sure you check out Dale's website at:

http://waveatthebus.blogspot.com/

What ideas do you have to torment and embarrass your kids?


- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog.

Pin It Now!

Munch's Hunches: NFL Week 7

Greetings StuntDad Nation and welcome to Week 7 of the NFL 2011 season.

Are post-game fisticuffs between coaches more interesting than an actual football game? Did the Bengals get TWO 1st-Round draft picks for a washed up, 33 year old quarterback? Charles Barkley is now covering the NFL due to the NBA lockout—we already have Warren Sapp, do we really need another overweight mushmouth analyzing the weekly match-ups?

Well folks, Munch bounced back from a tough week 5 by going 2-1 in Week 6, and I firmly believe that a 66% winning percentage is good enough to start betting on higher learning educations. So, the Stunt Pete household is betting big this weekend. If at least two of his predictions below are correct this week, it looks like the little guy can punch his ticket to an already-paid-for university of his choice. If not, I'm going to have to go "Denzel Washington on him" and turn him into the next Jesus Shuttlesworth.

The Saturday Stuntline is shaping up as...

The Early Game

• Match-Up: San Diego (4-1) at NY Jets (3-3)
• Preview: Earlier this week, Rex Ryan ran his mouth to the world again. He stated that Norv Turner sucks as a coach by bragging to reporters that if San Diego had hired him in 2007, Ryan and the Chargers would have several Super Bowl Rings by now. This same world also knows that Rex is a douche and the only rings he'd have by now would be those from a Burger King value meal. However, this type of pre-game dissing might lead to another post-game "My Schwartz is Bigger Than Yours" incident. And, who wouldn't want to tune in just at the thought that someone might slug Rex Ryan right in the (pork) chops?
• Munch's Hunch: Coach Ryan looks like a piggy. Piggies play in poo-poo. Go Chargers!!!
• StuntDad Diatribe: Ok, kid—their coach is a turd, I'll give you that one. But, I think the bacon-cravin', feet-lovin', trash-talkin' widebody motivates his team to finally reach their potential this year to stun the Bolts on their home turf. This will be LaDainian Tomlinson's first game against the former team who decided not to give a 31 year old running back $8 million a year. Major props to Chargers owner AJ Smith, but be forewarned—LT is poised as a pig-in-s#$t for payback, and Mark Sanchez is said to have brought two cartons of hot dogs for the 4th quarter of this week's Lips and A$$holes Bowl. Gang Green oinks one out: 31-30.

The Late Game

• Match-Up: Houston (3-3) at Tennessee (3-2)
• Preview: Has it really been 14 years since the Houston Oilers moved to Nashville? My god, I was still in college. Tear. Enough with the nostalgia...In the preseason, this game was hyped around Johnson & Johnson. But, an injury will prevent Andre from playing, and money will prevent Chris from playing—well. How many times do we see player performance decline after he receives an insanely high contract extension? CJ2K is no exception as he has 53 million reasons why he should run out of bounds instead of turning up field. The chance for a 1st down coupled with the the thought of a seven-man pile on could cost him that G5 he and his buddies have their eyes on. However, this game will likely come Down to the Matt, as these two quarterbacks, Schaub and Hasselbeck, won't have their superstars to lean on. The Battle for the AFC South features two teams that are very evenly matched, with or without J&J, and should be a close one.
• Munch's Hunch: Coach's name is Munchak. Word. Go Titans!
• StuntDad Diatribe: I can respect the name bias Kid, but Tennessee is going to feel the wrath of the Arian Nation. Foster will go "2&2: with 200 all purpose yards and reach the endzone twice. Matt Schaub will have a solid game albeit forgetful game by having his own "2&2" game (+200 yrds passing, 2 touchdowns). Remember when Matt Schaub was thought to be the second coming of Joe Montana after throwing for 4,000 yards two seasons ago? He's actually starting to show his true colors as more of a, well—Matt Hasselbeck. But, it will be Hasselbeck who struggles against an underrated Texan secondary. In fact, I predict that after throwing 2 interceptions for the first time all season, the aging quarterback will finally admit in the post-game interview that he is just happy to still be on TV at this point of his career, in this week's Double Deuce Bowl. Houston "Remembers the Oilers" with a 28-24 win.

The Night Game

• Match-Up: Baltimore (4-1) at Jacksonville (1-5)
• Preview: Like last week, we flipped another quarter between the SNF and MNF games this week as both match-ups kind of blow. Two of the best (Baltimore and New Orleans) go up against two of the worst (Jacksonville and Indianapolis). We're stuck writing about this match-up and you're stuck reading about it.
• Munch's Hunch: Nomo Mojo — Go Ravens!
• StuntDad Diatribe: You got it, Kid. To make this game semi-entertaining, we are thinking that  a Prop Bet might make this fun: who gets knocked out of the game first: Maurice Jones-Drew or Blaine Gabbert. Mojo might be a rolling ball of butcher knives, but he will be pummeled by a defense who is old enough, smart enough, and dirty enough to clog the lanes on every down, in order to make Gabbert throw. While MJD takes the hard hits inside, my guess is that Chuck Pagano (D-Coordinator) will bring the noise on every play by blitzing Lewis and Suggs early and often on the rookie. Gabbert will get hurried, knocked down, and probably have his hair long, golden hair messed up in this week's Breaking Blaine Bowl. Ravens cage the Jags: 34-13.

Now, we turn to StuntDad Nation on your thoughts on these and other games from around the league. Likes, dislikes, hits, & misses?

- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog.

Pin It Now!

Decorating in Style: Superheros Prints From Ivan Camelo

If a man's home is his castle, then his child's room is his artistic canvas. Wife willing, this is a great place for you to make a statement about yourself and start to influence the little one's eventual style. When it comes to decorating your child's room, one of the things I advocate is to go against the norm. If you can buy it off a shelf, then what is that saying about your style? Aren't you just teaching your little one to get on the conveyor belt of consumerism and become just another one of the overpriced coffee clutching, smartphone staring, petty conversation having, eyes glazed over "sheeple" that you pity on the way to work every day? This why I like to find unique ways to decorate and put a different spin on the norm. An easy way to do that is to support one of the many talented artists you can find on the web. Of my favorite sites to find artists is Geek-Art.net. Here you can find thousands of artists that have a talent of taking the mundane that you have come to know and putting a cool spin on it. One of my favorite recent finds is Ivan Camelo.

He recently rifted on DC and Marvel superheros. Here are a couple of examples:

The great thing is that if you like his work, you can purchase it at a pretty reasonable price, or even download it for free (but I would make sure you reach out to Ivan and make sure he is cool with that). Just think about the things you could do once you have established your artwork — the cool color combinations, the integration of neat0 toys, oooh and don't forget the bedding and window treatments...my inner Martha Stewart is moist with the multitude of options.

There are literally thousands of artists out there that are doing amazing work. We will continue to post about some of our favorites, but make sure you let us know if you find somebody that you like.


- Not a parenting blog, not a daddy blog, not a mommy blog — it's a Stunt Dad blog.

Pin It Now!

Halloween Safety

I just read a tweet by KidsDr.com about a study by the CDC that found the risk for children to be hit by cars is 4 times higher than any other night of the week. It reminded me that while we love to spend time dreaming up the coolest costumes and our candy strategy, we also need to spend time on how to keep the little goblins and ghouls safe.


Here are the unofficial* Stunt Dad Top 10 Safety Strategies

1. Keep costumes safe - no sharp or dangerous objects
2. Keep costumes flame retardent
3. Stay in groups
4. Be visible
5. Inspect candy
6. Don't enter strangers homes
7. Use crosswalks
8. Carry a flashlight
9. Stay on sidewalks
10. Stay away from Homemade goods unless you know the cook

For the more ways to keep the kids safe, check out these valuable links:

KidsDr.com
http://www.kidsdr.com/daily-dose/stay-safe-this-halloween

Safety Tips from the CDC
http://www.cdc.gov/family/halloween/

Info from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/hallow.html

Do you have any other Halloween safety suggestions?

*This asterisk covers us from any legal recourse if you fail to keep your kids safe on Halloween. I mean come on, we're a blog written by a couple of dads and our friend, Terry. Should we really be who you rely on for all your advice. I mean we just launched a month ago, how did you get by without us? Let's just shake hands and agree to disagree. Let's hug it out.

Pin It Now!

It's Pizza Friday!

Friday is the best day ever! It's not because I can throw caution to the wind and stay up past 10pm and check out what's on Skinemax. It's because it's PIZZA Friday! Protocol at the Stunt Ben house is to schedule nothing, turn down offers for poker with friends or a jam session with the old band and get home for pizza, a movie and quality family time (whether we want to or not).

What's Stuntastic about Pizza Friday?

1. It's scalable. Some Fridays it's a piece of bread, melted cheese and salami cut into circles, triangles, and octagons served with a side of pop quiz on shapes. Other Fridays it's Homemade Pizza kitchen or delivery from a favorite local pizza place that you actually went to BK (Before Kids). Whatever it is, the family knows we'll be home, together, and having fun.

2. No chores. Other nights can get cluttered with late nights at work, laundry, dishes, cleaning up the boys room or home repairs. But NOT on Pizza Friday! No laundry, no work, no cleaning up our rooms, nada. Pizza Fridays are just about family, food and a flick.

3. Easy cleanup. After a tough week it's nice not to have a big mess after dinner. When you order in for Pizza Friday, it comes in a box and leaves in a box. Use paper plates, paper cups, and eat with your hands. It leaves more time with the family and less time in the kitchen.

4. Leftovers! I'm a sucker for Pizza Breakfast on Saturday mornings.

5. It's Pizza. Enough said.

Who else is a Pizza Friday freak? Or what other food routines are out there in The Stunt Dad Nation? Taco Tuesday? Waldorf Salad Wednesdays? Or do you call out all the stops and pull off Thanksgiving Thursday?

Pin It Now!

Infant Swim Lesson: The Head Clamp

The other day, a snooty, playground parent asked me, "So, is your son swimming yet?"

I thought, God no. He's not even 18 months old. But, it got me thinking: maybe he should be ready for the water?

I asked Wifey and she told me that kids younger than him learn to swim, and we should establish a "connection" between Munch and the water at an early age.

It sounded like a great idea so I Googled "Baby Swimming" and clicked on the first YouTube clip I saw (video is embedded below).

Well—Wifey was right. There are connections being made. Sick and twisted connections, but connections nonetheless.

Personally, I was mortified watching the video. Then again, I also happen to be against using a vise clamp on children, for any reason.

I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the plier-like swimming technique.

Is this Stuntastic or Stuntcrazy?

Pin It Now!

Are you a Dufflebag?

Let's face it, carrying an infant car seat sucks, even if the little one isn't in it.

They are cumbersome and are usually held 1 of 3 ways:

- The Dufflebag: Straight-arm, straight-down, straight shredding of your thighs

- The Grocerybag: Two hands, two arms, total security, total emasculation

- The Handbag: One arm, one crook of your elbow, one humbling experience

More often than not, we typically fall into the Handbag approach, right? Which means, as a dude, we suck up our pride and take ease over aesthetics. Thank you Louis Vuitton for not marketing to men.

But even still, the Handbag has its issues. The crook of my elbow got more and more sore as Munch began to grow. Two months post-Munch's arrival, the 10lb. carrier + the 10lb. Munch (which us Dads know, doesn't really equate to 20 lbs., right?) began to take its toll on the important things in life...

• Raising and lowering my morning coffee
• Perfecting my jump serve on Wii Beach Volleyball
• Practicing for the 2015 Super Dad Arm Wrestling Championships

That's when a friend introduced us to the Wrap and Roll Infant Carrier Arm Pad, from Itzy Ritzy. This arm pad is a cushy bumper that wraps around the top of the infant carrier. Not only does it help with your arm going numb, it folds out to be used as a tummy time mat, changing pad, and blanket.

Your wife will love it and you will to.

What type of Bag Dad are you?

Pin It Now!

Get Ugly and Get What You Want Out of Life

I was out shopping with Puddin the other day, perusing the aisles of our neighborhood toy store. I stumbled into what might possibly be the cutest damned thing I have ever seen...the Uglydoll. These simple plush little monsters come in all shapes, sizes and colors. I asked the store owner about them and she said that these were the hottest items she had in the store.

My immediate thought was "Damn! Why didn't I think of that. These things are just weird shaped pieces of felt sewn together with silly faces on them. I could have sewn a sock with googly eyes on it and called it Socko the Sock Seas Monster. Curse you God! Why don't my dreams come true?! Why do you test me like this?! I have dreams! I have inspirations! Don't you know that I now have 4 mouths to feed? Why can't I have stuff! I want stuff!"

After I was asked to leave the toy store and never come back (I guess I must have verbalized half of the diatribe that I thought was just in my head), I went home and did a little bit of research on the Uglydoll. What I found was a solid reminder that if you want things, you need to do things.

The story behind Uglydoll is a great inspiration to those interested in making their dreams come true:

It started in October 2001 with a letter David Horvath wrote to Sun-Min Kim just after she had to move away due to a student visa expiring, long before they were married. That letter had a cartoon of his character Wage at the bottom saying: "Working hard to make our dreams come true so we can be together again soon" next to it. That dream was to tell stories through books and toys. As a surprise gift Sun-Min sewed a doll of Wage, and sent it to David in the mail. David showed Wage to his pal Eric Nakamura, owner of the Giant Robot magazine and store, who thought David was pitching him a product and immediately ordered a few more for his shop. David wrote to Sun Min asking her to sew more, while sending emails with stories about Wage, Babo and Ice-Bat's first ever adventure, soon to become Chilly Chilly Ice-Bat. The stuffed animals come in a normal size, a "little ugly", "Jumbo", or a clip-on. (via Wikipedia)

Ten years later, Uglydoll has gone from being a doodle on a letter, to a toy and book empire.

So the moral of the story is that if you want something in this world, get off your duff and do it. Even if it is creating just one poorly made prototype out of tape, sticks and hope. That is one step closer to your dream. Go do it. It will lead to the next step, which will lead to the next step. Eventually you will find yourself down a path, where you are bringing your ideas to life. Go make some thing ugly today!!!

Do you have a dream or scheme that is going to take you from check-to-check Charlie to Daddy Morebucks? What are you doing to bring this idea to life? Let us know.

Pin It Now!

Onesies That are The Twosies

One of the first things I did when I found out I was having a little one was go out and look for unique and cool onesies for the little one to rock. Much to my disappointment, most of the clothing out there for little ones is not that cool. I get it, little boys like puppies and little girls are princesses, but what about introducing them to the important things like Star Wars, cartoon characters and the 1989 cast of Saturday Night Live? Not wanting to raise my child in a world where he knows more about Elmo then Elvis, I took the situation into my own hands. I began to make my own onesies.

Here is what you need to make yourself some of the coolest onesies in town (and yes, I just wrote that):

• Iron On Transfer Paper: There are multiple companies that sell this. You can pick it up at any office supply store or major retailer.

• Medium to High Resolution Images: This is where the fun starts. What are you into? Star Wars? Calvin and Hobbes? Dungeons and Dragons? Classic Movie Monsters? The Golden Girls? Whatever you are into can be found on the Interwebs. Use Google Image search to look for your area of interest. I recommend sticking with medium to large images (lower left hand side of the results). You will need to click on the image. It will go to the site and showcase the image in a pop-up box. You will want to click on full-size image. You now can right mouse click on this image and save to your hard drive. I recommend that you keep a folder for these images because they start to take over your hard drive.
  
  So now that you have that ideal image of Estelle Getty, you need to do some basic photo manipulation. (Disclaimer: It is wrong to utilize copyrighted images and we at Stunt Dad do not recommend doing it. Do you know how much money you are taking out of Estelle Getty's mouth right now? What did she do to you? Sure she was mean to Blanche, but you would be to. She was a floozy. But if you should want to proceed further we can't stop you...cool?)

• Photo Manipulation: One of the keys to this exercise is that you will need to save the image reversed (mirrored). The best way to articulate why is to ask you to lift your palm, take a pen and write Stunt Dad Rules on it (shameless self promotion), now take your hand place it on a piece of paper. What you will see that your legally binding commitment to Stunt Dad is now reversed. When you take a standard picture and print it on iron transfer paper, you will be ironing the back side of the page that you printed on. This will mean that you will need to use either a software like PhotoShop, an online tool like Pixlr or even PowerPoint or Word (click on the image, hold down shift and drag it to the right, it should flip the image) to take the image and reverse it.

• A printer with color ink: For some reason our printer is constantly out of ink. I blame the Illuminati, but I can't prove it. Until then, I always make sure to check the printer ink before starting any major project.

• Finally, and maybe the most important, a wife that is willing to show you how to use the iron. I am not allowed near anything that can set the house on fire, so I have to ask my wife. If you fall into that camp, be nice, ask your wife and have her follow the instructions on the iron on transfer package.

Remember to flip the image (mirror). You will be really angry when you realize you wasted an iron-on with an image that is not reversed.

Good luck and thank you for being a friend. We have now traveled down a road and back again. Your heart is true. Your a pal and a confidant. And if you through a party and invited everyone you knew, you would see that the biggest gift would be from me and (tearing up) the card would say thank you for being a friend.

Sorry about that, I had to get it out. Here are a couple of examples of the technique perfected:

Pin It Now!

App of the Week: KidCalc

I just learned about a great math app for toddlers called KidCalc. It has several different number games for counting, recognizing and writing numbers and counting, but the best part is the addition and subtraction. The app talks and visually shows groups of objects merging together. Then asks your child to select how many objects there are from 4 multiple choice selections. It grabbed Monkey's attention right away and within 15 minutes he started knowing a few of the addition challenges from repetition. This is exactly what I was looking for to go to the next level of learning numbers and starting to understand the basics of addition and subtraction. The app provides several age settings: 2-4, 4-6, 6-8, 8-10 and little genus so that you can manage the complexity of the problems displayed. It also allows granular control of items such as integer to count by (1,2,3 etc), lowest number, highest number, ascending, descending and a myriad of others. Check out KidCalc when you get a chance.

Pin It Now!

This Weeks Stunt Dad DARE! - Buy flowers for no reason

Every week the dads at Stunt Dad HQ challenge the Stunt Dads out there in Metropolis and Main Street to step up and accept a dare. No, there is no decoder ring for a reward, but you will get smile from the people you love and care for every day. So suit up, stretch, and take the challenge like a man.

This weeks challenge: Buy Flowers

As busy fathers and husbands, we don't always appreciate the difference a bouquet of flowers could make in our loved ones life. We usually buy them to say thanks, I love you, please love me back, I'm sorry about the lake house incident of 2006 (that is a long story I can tell you later after the trial) or because we were told to buy them for that annoying get together tomorrow. But we don't buy them for no reason. So if you dare, stop by a flower shop, your local farmer's market or grocery store and pick up a bunch flowers. Cut the ends, put them in a vase and hopefully enjoy the benefits.

Pin It Now!

Getting Ready for a Baby Girl: Wiping Backwards

Since Wifey and I found out we are expecting a baby girl in November, I have random thoughts of tweakage.

Not in the angry or pissed off kind of way. And no, I don’t mean I’m thinking about taking five microdots and running down Wacker Drive naked either.

I’ve spent 17 months raising a little boy and although I never had a sister, I realize that there will be some slight changes I’ll need to make when K2 comes.

1. The front to back wipe. Currently, I grab Munch like a turkey, raise his butt, wipe upwards, and put him back down. Given the change in, ahem, anatomy - I understand it’s not a great idea to “pour the chocolate on the sundae.” Hence, I’ve redirected my efforts - and let me tell you, its uncomfortable as he$$. It's like trying to throw a football lefty.
2. Affection Modifcation. Yelling out “Come here dude” or “You’re my buddy, right buddy?” won’t exactly work with K2. Not unless I want her to host her own afternoon talkshow in 30 years. One of Ellen DeGeneres’s famous quotes: "Boys called other girls babe or baby...they called me pal." Enough said, right?
3. Put down the toys. Everyone keeps telling me that having a girl means they talk that much sooner. From day 1, I’ve been told to get ready to gab. Uh, that ain't me, K2. When I play with Munch, I make goofy noises and speak in silly voices. Is than enough to address the notion that “baby girls thrive on communication?" Gulp.

What other tweaks am I missing? Help, I've got less than a month...

Pin It Now!

Burrito Baby

In preparation for K2, I tried to think of what frustrated me most when I was a new dad. At the top of the list was swaddling. I hated it at first, mostly due to the false advertising at the hospital. The nurse made it look so easy. Nice and tight every time. Under 10 seconds. Munch stopped crying immediately and looked so comfortable.

When I tried it at home? Disaster. Munch would keep crying. He'd wiggle his way out of it. Wifey would eventually push me aside saying, "Just let me do it." There was nothing worse to me than hearing that statement.

So—to make sure all of you dads look like rock stars, here's a quick guide or reminder on how to wrap up your newborn like a burrito and be the StuntDad that not only you want to be, but the StuntDad your wife wants you to be.

Items you can practice on:

• Football
• Watermelon
• Cereal Box (seriously)

Trust me, once you nail this down, you will feel like a golden god.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/W4SnaQ1DVJM

Pin It Now!

Cartoons That Don't Suck: Phineas and Ferb

As a new parent one of the first things you learn is that your tv is no longer yours. It has been taken over by an obsessive compulsive fanatic only interested in things that make the most zen individual want to poke their eyes out. As a victim of many hours of Barney, Elmo and the Wiggles (seriously, how the hell are they one of the largest musical acts in the world?), I am glad to say that there are oasises of actually entertaining shows out there that will not only entertain the little one, but even you. Cartoons That Don't Suck is a regular column that focuses on a show and breaks down why you might want to get your kids interested now.

• The Show: Phineas and Ferb
• The Channel: Disney
• The Premise: Two hyper intelligent step-brothers, Phineus and Ferb, that spend their summer vacation building amazing contraptions while their sister, Candace tries in vain to bust them. There is also a secondary story line that follows their pet platypus, Perry, who is a secret agent that is in constant battle with an evil scientist named Dr. Doofenshmirtz.
• Why it doesn't suck: One of the brilliant things about this show is that it is self aware of the audience and does not speak down to them. The shows always present a creative storyline with humor that is understandable by children, but aimed at adults. It also has a great message that with creativity almost anything is possible. Also, how can you not love a show that has secret agent platypus (platypi?) and an evil scientist that is more pathetic than Mr. Furly from three's company. Trust me, after one viewing, you will be humming "Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated" jingle throughout the day.

Stunt Dad Ratings:

4 Helmets

Do you have any recommendations? Anything that we should avoid?

Pin It Now!