No Off Season 4 Dads

If you are like me, you have children in your home that are sick and tired of being inside from Covid-19.  The restrictions that different states and countries are putting into play are creating an environment for safety, but also an environment that our children, especially teens, are simply not used to.  Let's listen as Dijon discusses how reasoning with your teen may benefit their outlook on hanging out with friends and Covid.

Friends--how many of us have them? Friends--ones we can depend on?  There is a big difference between having friends and having trustworthy friends.  There are those who you can chill in front of the TV watching a basketball game.  However, there are real friends that you can share the innermost parts of you.  Fathers, we need these.  We need trustworthy relationships that we can bounce ideas off of for parenting, marriage, and just everyday life issues.  Oftentimes, men don't expose the inner parts of themselves because we feel it can show weakness, but it is crucial for our growth as men and as fathers.

Take a listen as Dijon gives some insight into why having trustworthy relationships is vital for our everyday lives, especially as it relates to our parenting.  

Song Credit:  'Friends' by Whodini

Book Reference:  'Four Pillars of a Man's Heart:  Bringing Strength Into Balance' by Stu Weber

Our children are growing up faster than we did.  Technology, culture, and science has propelled them forward quicker than us.  It's important for us to have a handle on the times and gain understanding and different perspectives from others.  The variety of perspectives can greatly influence the way we carefully parent our own children.  Take a listen with Dijon as he discusses some resources to help us in our parenting.  As dads, you have to remember, you have No Off Season!

Books references:

The Wonder of Boys by Michael Gurian, Ph.D

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson

Praying Circles Around Your Children by Mark Batterson

Preparing for Adolescence by Dr. James Dobson

Bringing Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson

Of Thee I Sing by Barack Obama

A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

The Opposite of Spoiled - -Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous, and Smart About Money by Ron Lieber

Mom...Dad...when can I have a girlfriend?  Are you ready for that question?  The question and conversation has come up in our home on different occasions, sometimes in a joking manner and others not.  Dads, how do you handle the conversation?  Do you embrace it or divert it?  Do your teens feel comfortable talking with you about such a sensitive topic to them?  Listen and engage as we talk on a perspective of teen dating.  

Music credits:

Prince -- Girls and Boys

Force MD's -- Tender Love

How many times do you go to a PTA or either sponsored school event and you notice tons of mothers, but a slim picking of fathers?  I want to be a present voice in my children's education.  Listen to a few tips on how fathers can make this happen.  

The home is a beautiful place to go after work or school, or to unwind after a long day.  However, that home has to be maintained.  Living with my family, The A4 Squad, we have come up with a system to encourage, engage, and put more responsibilities on everyone in the house to upkeep it.  Listen in on a few tips on how to get that done.  

Cultivating independence in your child is not something that happens overnight.  It is a process that involves building trust through a continuous series of developmental situations and opportunities.  Listen in for the next 10 minutes on ways to help cultivate that environment.

Starting out in the Boogie Down Bronx, hip hop has morphed throughout the ages as a premier music genre.  Hip hop has generated many arguments on who is the best, what cut was the best, who could flow the best, and so on.  There is just not enough time to dive so deep into this musical subject.  Let's hear a perspective on how we've been influenced by hip hop culture.  And I am sure that you have your own perspective.  

Question:  Who is the best hip hop artist?

Music sample credits:  

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five -- The Message

Heavy D & The Boys -- Blue Funk

A Tribe Called Quest -- Awards Tour

Real As It Gets -- Jay Z (featuring Young Jeezy)

Kendrick Lamar -- Alright

Lil Baby, Gunna, & Drake -- Never Recover

Megan Thee Stallion (featuring Beyonce') -- Savage Remix

The ideals of 'freedoms' being taken from a teen during Covid-19 (aka...Coronacation) has challenged our children to their very core.  Listen as we think about a perspective that can help us help them.

These words have stuck in my head for years as I grappled with how to prepare my sons for a life outside of our home.  Listen to the story of how this phrase helped change my parenting.