Lord of the Castle

At around 9:15 last night, as I was brushing my teeth, Cakes, our youngest called her mom and asked if she could hang out with some of her new friends from church after work. She promised that she wouldn’t be home too late. The father instinct in me told my wife to clarify “How late [...]

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The penultimate moment In the movie “A Few Good Men” comes when Tom Cruise’s sharp young lawyer Kaffee demands, “I want the truth!” Jack Nicholson’s crusty old Colonel Jessup yells back, “You can’t handle the truth!” It seems that am forced to relive a variation of this scene over and over again with my children. Tonight was [...]

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The woman who taught our children to play piano called my wife today. Over the years, she and my wife have  become very good friends. The conversation took a little bit of a strange turn this time. “I have two guys that might be possibilities for Bean (our oldest daughter).” When my wife expressed surprise [...]

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I posted several posts recently (6/22, 25 & 26) about confronting my son about his character. I have spoken to him on two more occasions since those posts. The primary issue is how focused he has been on young women. In particular, a girl that he met at church. And not just any girl… A very pretty [...]

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Today was the day… I finally confronted my son. I was as ready as I was ever going to be. There was nothing left but to do it. So, I did. I talked to him about the four levels of obedience (obedience from the heart, obedience, disobedience and rebellion) and where he is on the [...]

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I still haven’t confronted my son… He worked at The Bonefish Grill last night. He is working again tonight. This major confrontation has been delayed for since Monday and I am REALLY glad! Why do I say that? On Monday night, I avoided biting his head off. I spent Tuesday and Wednesday dreading (no exaggeration!) the [...]

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I avoided a disaster yesterday… My son came back to Kansas to find a summer job and save up money for the next year of college. Today, he slept in until 12:00! I have a very difficult time sitting passively and watching someone let opportunity slip by, especially when it is one of my children! [...]

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I’m not sure that I like Father’s Day… It seems to me that it replaces a very real moral obligation (“honor your father and your mother”) with a cheap cultural imitation…a way to soothe a guilty conscience. I realize for many it is the only time that children give any honor to their father so I suppose that it is [...]

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As a father, I am concerned for my children’s well being and success. I realize that doesn’t make me special or different. Most parents have the same concerns. However, I am very aware that I can only do so much. All of my children are at the age and stage of life where they have to [...]

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It may sound strange, coming from a blogger, but I have not been a huge fan of technology. We went several years without a television in our home. When we did get one, TV time was strictly limited. Basically, for most of my children’s lives, we used the television to watch videos. During his childhood, [...]

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