Dads Unplugged

What would you want your children to remember about you if you were to die today? Is it that he works too hard? Was it that Dad was never around? Was it that Dad was often angry when he came home? So many parents say the traditional phrase, "I want them to remember that I always put them first. That everything I did, I did for them." Blah, blah, blah. Let's come up with something original. Todd has three words for his kids. He also pontificates about the advice he would pass on to his kids. What would it be? Also, why is Proctor & Gamble (http://www.pg.com/en_US/index.shtml) sticking it to Dads in many of their recent ads? They made us all look terrible in a diaper ad. Now they have done it again with a 2012 London Olympic Games ad. What is going on? Why don't they feel Dads are capable of doing anything? Come Father's Day, they better turn this ship around.

Have you ever read that yearly release by Salary.com (http://www.salary.com/what-s-a-mom-worth-in-2012/)? This year it was $112, 962. Alright Moms! You are worth a lot of cash! So why does one woman (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505125_162-57415603/why-i-hate-salary.coms-whats-a-mom-worth-survey/?tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea) hate this survey? Why does Todd and Kent think it's crap? Oh, let's count the ways. And by the way, what about stay at home dads? Plus how do you as a parent set up your child's social network (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lori-mccoy/rite-of-passage-for-teens_b_1419324.html)? Should you? How intensely do you monitor it? A bunch of mom's responded during the show and Todd and Kent talked about how they plan on handling it when their time comes... Don't miss Kent's personal story that informs us all that maybe he needs someone to monitor his online activity. Yikes!

Keli Goff (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/keli-goff/should-airlines-charge-pa_b_1413699.html), a columnist for The Huffington Post, believes that parents with unruly children should be fined by the airlines. If you can't get your child to be quiet so Keli can sleep or get her work done, then you should be fined. Well you guessed it. This kind of set me off. Now, I wanted to make sure that I didn't just rail on her. I wanted to deliver some resources and tips that would help parents deal with Keli and Malaysian Airlines who is now launching Child-Free cabins in the sky. In this episode, I will share with you a couple of tricks to use with your kids that can help stop them from screaming on a place and I will teach you about the GREATEST tool (http://www.positivediscipline.com/files/MistakenGoalChart.pdf) ever invented to help you with your children's outbursts and more importantly your outbursts at them. There is a way to make this situation better. Keli Goff's idea is an insult to her intelligence, though by her answer it is doubtful she has much.

What's harder? Raising a boy or a girl (http://www.babble.com/toddler/toddler-behavior-and-learning/raising-boys-fathers-parenting-advice/)? The debate rages on. Lots of parents chimed in on this one. Kent and Todd differed in their opinions. Todd feels that boys get cheated because nobody thinks they are emotional and by not dealing with that side of their personality, parents are doing them a disservice. Also one man put a list together of 50 Rules for his Unborn Son: Unsolicited advice for his man-in-training (http://www.babble.com/pregnancy/my-pregnancy/fatherhood-life-advice-growing-up/). Many of them made sense. Some were completely bizarre. There were some that didn't make the list. What about the advice that you received as a child? Kent loved the reason to keep all of your letters. Todd laughed at #35: Try a hairstyle that you'll one day regret. I'll get over it. The link is at our webpage. See which ones resonate with you. And find out where to get the best parenting posts (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/parents/) on the Internet. And as for that drink I was talking about along with Activated Charcoal to help stop diarrhea? It's called Recharge (http://www.rwknudsenfamily.com/products/recharge/). Great stuff.

You know, Dads don't get enough credit. We can make our kids better students. The best way for us to do that is by getting involved. But how? Enter Eric Snow, the National Director of Watch D.O.G.S. (http://fathers.com/watchdogs) (Dads Of Great Students). He has been helping guide this program for the past four years and now over 200,000 different dads around America are taking a day off work to be involved in their program. But it's not really their program per se. In today's episode you can learn about how Watch D.O.G.S. is helping all of our children be better students and better people. Fathers can have that much influence. It's not to say that women are crucial as well, but they are more often there because Dads are commonly working. So let's try to balance the playing field and make things better for our children. This is a powerful and exciting interview that may just have you telling your boss, "I'm taking tomorrow off to be with my kids!" He might want to do the same thing!

Some people are making a difference at this very moment. We talked about them on this episode. Kate Upton is showing us you don't have to Kate Moss skinny to be a gorgeous model. Katy Butler is proving that teenagers do have power and she has almost 300,000 signatures to prove. Now what is she going to do with those Hancocks? What about those Portland parents who just won a 2.9 million dollar lawsuit because their child was born with Down Syndrome? And a new whistle blower is telling everyone to start grinding their meat at home. Why? Because he used to work for the USDA and a report from Harvard says you might not want to eat red meat all. We tell you why some people are just big boobs and toss a few opinions in there as well.

Kent and Todd tackle a stupid business idea, Baby Headgear (http://babysfirstheadgear.com/). What the hell has become of parents? Are we so lazy that we can't protect our children? This sets the stage for a show full of discussion about what is wrong with kids, parents and those kids that go Goth. Who is to blame? Parents. Where and how can we fix these issues? In this episode, because Todd and Kent have answers.

If you could choose an athlete, alive or dead, for your child to emulate, who would it be and why? There were many responses to this question and many that confused Todd but there were a few that may be gone, but should never be forgotten. Are you a coach? Todd is and he plans on taking these answers and asking his kids to do a little research about them to learn from the great leaders that are not making headlines today. This is an episode that could keep on giving, because today's children, girls and boys, in the age of Facebook and Twitter, do not have the role models to follow. Which leads me to the other half of the show: discussing Tommy Jordan's tirade against his own daughter that lead to him shooting her laptop with his 45 handgun. Was he right? Was he wrong? What did he miss in this opportunity that was handed to him? Was his daughter just trying to reach out for help? It's all discussed on this episode of Dads Unplugged.

Facebook and Twitter are more addictive than Sex? Social Media is now creating illnesses in teens? A 21 Year old Philomath Dad gets arrested for spanking his child between 50-60 times. Those were the topics Todd and Kent tackled on this edition of Dads Unplugged. How can posting on Facebook enhance ticks or Tourette's Syndrome ? Some Doctor's in upstate New York are proclaiming their research shows kids are having more issues. As for wanting Social Media connection more than sexual connection? That's can't be true, but again research says it is. Todd and Kent debate that. Regarding the kid from Philomath, it wasn't time to stand on the soapbox, it was time for something else. Find out exactly how Todd reacted in this episode.

Have you read the Huffington Post article entitled, "Don't Carpe Diem (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/glennon-melton/dont-carpe-diem_b_1206346.html)"? It's been making the rounds on Facebook and parenting circles. Todd and Kent shared their perspectives and asked all of you a simple question. Do you love parenting? I mean really loving parenting, like you can't do without it. Do you love the good, the bad, the tantrum on Aisle 5? Kent and Todd debate whether or not parents love parenting. People say they do, but are they really just trying not to be judged? If you did say no, would you be considered a bad parent? People respond via Facebook, and the answer surprises Todd.

THIS IS AN EXPLICIT EPISODE. THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF SWEARING THAT TAKES PLACE. SO IF YOU ARE ADVERSE TO FOUL LANGUAGE, YOU MIGHT WANT TO SKIP THIS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Have your kids ever sworn? What did you do about it? With the TV shows now swearing upwards of 260 times per week in primetime, our kids are hearing it even if you don't allow them to say it. Growing up, swearing at Todd's house was not allowed. The older they got, the less effect the "no swearing" rule had. So how do you handle it when your kids drop an F-Bomb? Todd and Kent share their recent experiences. In fact, Kent was very open and let us know that not only did an F-bomb drop at his house but so did a S-bomb, as in "I will wash your mouth out with soap." The phrase is alive and well in our country, Kent used it, followed through and then had the courage to use it again as a threat...to his two year old. We all make mistakes and Kent knows he had made one. Todd make mistakes all the time parenting. We all do. However in this episode of Dads Unplugged we talked about swearing and the best way to handle it and get beyond it with your kids..

Kent has shared this with you before on Dads Unplugged that he has a daughter with an old girlfriend. His daughter is 8 and recently moved back to town with the mother. Recently he found out that she has been struggling with reading and like a good Dad, he wanted to do something about it. LIke a bad Dad, he went about it the wrong way. Well, he didn't think that until he had an enlightening conversation with the Diva of Divorce (http://divorceondemand.com/)s in Portland,  Jody Stahancyk (http://oregondivorce.com/about_us/shareholders/jody_l_stahancyk). If you are looking for a clean Divorce or are having family issues,  she is the one to talk to. However, through her years of experience, she has learned a great deal on how to deal with sticky situations in marriage. She shared that with Kent. Kent shares that with you. If you are involved in a Non Custodial parenting scenario or you are divorced and struggling with the spouse, this is a MUST LISTEN, because in the end, it's not about you. It's about your child. And yes, you can screw it up. So don't.

When we make decisions we think we're in control. But are we? Dan Ariely has written many books on decision making, but this one struck a chord with Kent and I. Because not only did it talk about the decisions we make on a day to day basis and how predictably irrational we are, but we saw it as a perfect carryover to parenting. Who is more predictably irrational than children and we as parents can easily and quickly be sucked down into that vortex. Sometimes parenting resources come in different shapes and sizes and books. Check out this one as Kent and I break down some of the chapters that related directly to what we as Dads have to do every day: Parent.

Maybe you know, maybe you don't. My wife lost her sister over the holidays. She was mentally ill and was found dead in Pennsylvania. It has been a very difficult month for the entire family, but especially Laura and her parents and her brother. For me, it has been a different journey. How have I handled being a father and being the husband to a woman who has lost her sister. Some may say great. Some may say terrible. I have reasons for the way I have acted. I share those with you on this episode.

Here we are at the end of 2011 and how many of your personal goals did you reach? Do you even remember what they are? Todd and Kent discussed setting and attaining personal and business goals. There is a reason that everyone in Kent's company received iPad's this holiday season. Maybe we should all start reading the book, "predictably irrational"? There is no reason you can't start now. These two dads shed some amazing light on how to best set your goals and how to attain them in this current chaotic business world. It's really not that hard and you can have fun while doing it.