A Single Parent Weekend

IMG_0685This past weekend my wife went out of town. When I say weekend I mean she actually left Thursday morning, so it was an extended weekend, either way, I was left with the kids alone. I was in single parent mode. This isn’t anything I couldn’t handle. I am a responsible father. I can cook, I can clean. I’ve put the kids to bed and have given them baths before (not in that order of course). This was going to be different though. This was more than a night, this is several nights. It was time to get my game face on and become a super parent.

Thursday morning.

My wife, Destiny did not have to leave until later in the morning. So she was up and ready to give me a hand getting the kids ready to go to Nanners’ house (my mom). Because I work during the week I had asked my mom if she could watch the kids Thursday and Friday. She happily agreed and the Thursday morning hand-off went as smooth as could be. I even stopped at the gas station and picked up some donuts for the kids while we were on our way.

IMG_0664Thursday afternoon.

By now, Destiny is enjoying her extended weekend and I am on my way to pick up the kids. When I arrived at Nanners’ house Abby and Alex were both extremely happy to see me. Nanners said they were good, except they didn’t nap, or really eat much. I didn’t think much of it. I figured I would feed them dinner when I got home and then we can play until bath and bed. Boy was I wrong. Alex fell asleep not even 2 minutes after getting in the car. He slept for a good two hours. Abby fell asleep next to me on the couch while we were watching a movie. So I had two kids out for the count. I knew I should’ve kept them awake but I took this as an opportunity to finish my movie, the new Godzilla.

IMG_0706Thursday night.

Letting them sleep was not a good idea on my part. They both woke up very cranky. So I did what any super dad would do. I put food in their bellies. It was delicious. The kids ate a lot and both had put the crankiness behind them. So we turned on the Cardinals game and played with some toys until it was time for bath and bed. While we were playing with toys Abby mentioned to me that some kids don’t have dads, and then she told me that some kids don’t have moms either. I told her that was right and then she told me that some kids have two moms. I said that some also have two dads, and she proceeded to ask me “how many… five… six??”. I laughed and told her I had no idea and she seemed happy with that answer. They got their baths and then went to bed without a problem. I would say that night one was a semi-success.

Friday morning.

This time I was on my own. I got up earlier than usual so I could get a shower without running late. After I got myself ready I grabbed all of the kids’ stuff to take to Nanners for day two. Once I had all of their stuff ready I woke them up and got them ready. Everything was going smoothly and we were out the door to Nanners. Once we got there I grabbed them and their bags and realized that I grabbed their bags of stuff but totally forgot my laptop bag for work. A little flustered I regained my cool and figured I could make it a day without my regular computer. And I did.

IMG_0696Friday afternoon.

So I picked up the kids and this time they both napped and ate so things were definitely better this time around. I had some plans that evening for me and the kids to stop by my friend’s house warming party but first we needed to pick up a gift and a few other odds and ins. An hour and over budget later we get out of the store and head home to eat dinner.

Friday night.

With dinner done and the kids ready we headed out to my friend Steve’s house warming party. We got there and the kids immediately started running a muck. Steve and his fiance’ were cool about it and the kids got a kick out of circling their house. It helped me out because it definitely wore out the kids. We left and headed home for bath and bed. Abby asked if the Cardinals were playing. I don’t think they were so we watched Jurassic Park instead. She fell asleep next to me again so I moved her to her bed and went and crashed into my own pillows.

IMG_0693Saturday.

The weekends to me are easier than weekdays. On the weekend as long as you have everything you need at home you don’t have to go anywhere. You can wear pajamas all day if you want. So Saturday was a breeze. The kids woke up, I made a gourmet breakfast and got Alex to take a nap without a hitch. I had picked up a pumpkin and some Halloween crafts the night before so when Alex was napping, Abby and I got to work on the pumpkin. We knocked it out in no time and Abby even dug through the guts getting out some delicious pumpkin seeds to roast later.

We also played with Magic Rocks. If you don’t remember these things, well essentially you take this gel stuff, mix it with water, put these “rocks” in a container and pour the liquid mix over them. After a few hours some stalagmites grow from the rocks. It’s a quick and fun project to do with the scientific curious mind. My problem with it is that for how quick the setup is the payoff isn’t as cool as the picture on the box.

IMG_0729For dinner instead of making the kids something I took them out to eat. I was nervous about how they would behave with me alone, but it all worked out. They both were great. So great we even had some ice cream to share. Since it was the last night they would be under my watch without mom I let them go crazy. I turned up the music (Alabama Shakes) and they were both bouncing off the walls and couches. We took a break to get baths and then I let them go at it again for a little while longer. I could tell they were getting tired when the jumping slowed to a bounce, and then the bouncing slowed to just sitting. So I got them in bed and enjoyed the rest of the night cleaning up.

Mom came home on Sunday early afternoon and I could not have been happier. I mean the kids could not have been happier. They were super excited to see their mommy again, and this dad, well he got to lounge around the rest of the day watching movies. I was still helping out, but I was definitely not on active duty.

So what does all of this mean? Well for starters it means that mom shouldn’t feel like dad can’t handle it. Sure we might screw up and forget our work bag, but it happens. I know my wife can forget a thing or two when she also has a million other things to remember. But as parents we make it through and the kids eat, they get their baths, and they go to bed happy. Another thing I learned from all of this is that I have a new found respect for single parents of multiple kids. It was a fun but difficult weekend. I love my wife and I wouldn’t mind if she went out of town again, because I know I got this handled, but maybe we can wait a few months before that happens…

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IMG_0713Oh you wanted to know how I cooked the pumpkin seeds? Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (150 degrees C), wash the seeds in water, drain water, toss seeds in a bowl with a 1/2 stick of melted butter and salt. Then spread seeds on a baking sheet and bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. You probably will want to flip the seeds around every once in a while.

StLouisDad.com Instrumentals Vol.02

StLouisDad.com Instrumentals - Vol.2

Here is another set of five instrumentals for you to download for FREE! This set includes a few projects that have a very soft and sentimental sound, particularly projects 006 and 007. If you haven’t had a chance to check out StLouisDad.com Instrumentals – Vol.1 click here!

StLouisDad.com Instrumentals – Vol.02 will be released under a Creative Commons license. Read more about the specific license attached to these instrumentals here. If you have any questions about any of the instrumentals I can do my best to answer them, just send me an email.

Please comment below or email me with a link to your project if you use one of these instrumentals. I hope you enjoy these as much as I did making them and be sure to subscribe and follow me on TwitterInstagram, and Facebook to find out when Vol. 03 will be released!

Listen to a sample of this download!

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All Aboard the Great Pumpkin Express

PeanutsOn this day Sixty-Five years ago Charles Schulz published the very first Peanuts comic strip. Now after 18,000 strips, in 21 languages across 2,600 newspapers and 75 countries, along with a handful of cartoons (including It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown), Peanuts is finally coming to the big screen this November. Check out the trailer that is now available at PeanutsMovie.com!

Not only are your favorite Peanuts characters coming to theaters they are also coming to Union Station in St. Louis this October for The Great Pumpkin Patch Express! We already have our tickets and I will be sure to share my experience with everyone here. If this sounds like something you would like to take part of be sure to get your tickets sooner rather than later as seats are limited and filling up fast!

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The first Peanuts comic strip 10/02/1950

In the meantime why not Peanutize yourself and share your creation on your favorite social media sites. Here is what I would look like if I were ported into the Peanuts world and be sure to subscribe or check back in a few weeks to read all about our Great Pumpkin Express adventure!

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A Little Traditional Shaving

IMG_0570Growing up I did not have my father around to teach me how to shave. I also didn’t have YouTube or the Internet so it was up to myself to learn the in’s and out’s of the blade. I would say that middle school me (yes, I started shaving early) did a pretty good job at keeping myself straight. As I grew older I didn’t take shaving as seriously and let it go for months at a time. In high school I started to rock a goatee for most of those years and then eventually in college I started keeping it clean again.

During all that time I used regular store bought disposable razors. You know the ones, triple, quadruple, octoblades with contouring angles and gel to help keep the stroke smooth. At some point I picked up an electric shaver, which I still have, but only used a handful of times. I am not a fan of the pre-electric shave lotion, and then the after shave lotion to battle the irritation. Plus charging! It just got tedious just to get a quick shave in, so I went back to the store bought disposables. Those are what I have been using for the last decade or so, that is until recently.

MenEssentials.com sent me over a few products to check out in exchange for this review. Happy to oblige, I was sent a Merkur Solingen 23c Double Edge traditional safety razor, some Lea Classic shaving cream, and a MenEssentials Razorsafe to put my used blades in. I will have to admit that I was a little nervous about using the new safety razor. I had never used anything like this and not having the strip of gel or the contour maneuvering like I was used to starting giving me second thoughts about trying this out.

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Putting fears aside I gave it a shot anyway. I loaded up the included sample blade, started lathering up some of the Lea Classic shaving cream and got to work. Immediately I was impressed. One of the problems I typically have with disposables is that they get clogged up so fast and just rinsing them off doesn’t clear out all of the straggly hairs. The Merkur handled this perfectly. A quick rinse and I was back in business. While I didn’t time myself so I’m not 100% sure on this but it felt like my shave time was a lot faster as well. Sure, this doesn’t have the contour maneuvering but I don’t think you really need it after using the Merkur for a little over a week. My face feels and looks great and I feel like I get better accuracy when lining up the edges of my sideburns. I give the Merkur a ten out of ten. No wonder it is listed as one of the best selling safety razors on the planet.

menessentialslogoAs for the shaving cream. Embarrassingly enough I’ve used my wife’s shaving gel for several years now and have been pretty happy with how it works with the disposables. Lucky for her, I will no longer be using that cut-rate stuff anymore. The Lea Classic shaving cream leaves my skin feeling incredible. Getting that clean, fresh feeling after a shave is incomparable to many of the other brands I’ve used. After using Lea Classic I’m actually finding it hard to want to try another cream. In my opinion it is just that good.

The MenEssentials Razorsafe hasn’t been used yet, and I’m not exactly sure when I will be dropping my first used blade into it. Whenever that might be, at least I know that I can drop these blades into this metal box and not have to worry about my children’s hands grabbing a blade out of the trash can like they could with a disposable. These blades are sharp and can hurt those little fingers, so it’s important to have a game plan for getting rid of these other than just tossing the used blades in the trash. The Razorsafe is very inexpensive and the perfect item to add to your MenEssentials order.

MenEssentials provided St. Louis Dad with these products as compensation in exchange for an honest review. Please visit MenEssentials.com for more shaving tips, shaving products, and more!