On Monday, I experienced probably my most frightening experience since becoming a parent. I was in a meeting when I received a phone call from my daughter’s school, asking for a return call. I was immediately concerned because her school has never before called my office number. When I returned the call, I received chilling news….
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Transformational Life Experiences
I’ll never forget the life experiences that made me who I am today (or at least I shouldn’t). It’s a part of my life’s story. When I was in undergrad, I was a part of a phenonmenal gospel choir, The Voices of Inner Strength. I developed a lifetime of friendships in this group, people who I am…
Finding Your Family’s Community
Yesterday on the ride to the grocery store, my wife and I had a pretty in depth conversation about necessity of choosing the right community for our next home. So we began to go through our individual criteria for the community where we’d want to live. It’s interesting because, we’ve already done the pro-con list…
The beautiful chaos
Tonight, after reading 3 stories for bedtime (2 more than the customary 1), after we said our goodnight prayers, and both girls were tucked in, I just sat in the chair in their room watching Olivia suck her thumb and fall asleep. Just for a few minutes. I would have taken a picture…but then I…
Don’t get weary in well doing…
I know, I’m not supposed to start an imperative with a negative, but I digress. I’ve been thinking lately about the importance of perseverance in difficult situations. A lot of these reflections have come as a result of recent professional and personal obstacles, but what resonates the most with me is how the way I…
When was the last time?
Make a memory, and then revisit it often. That way you get double the joy from living in the present. This past weekend my wife and I visited our Alma Mater, Emory University for Homecoming weekend. It was the first time in a while that we’d actually been back on campus since probably our eldest,…
The beauty of having a true partner
Each month my wife and I have what’s called a monthly calendar and budget meeting. We’ll spend an hour or more discussing important events for the upcoming month, who’s working late, when, important meetings, weekend commitments for the family, etc. We’ll put it all up on a dry erase board in our office, then we’ll…
Loving the family you have
A lot goes into the decision to have another child. At least it does for us. We’ve been brewing over this now for a few months, to stop or to go for one more (perhaps a boy this time?). The truth of the matter is, I’m pretty satisfied with the two that I have right…
Increasing fatherhood involvement in early childhood education
I often remark when I’m speaking to a group of young fathers, that during my tenure as a 2nd grade teacher in Atlanta Public Schools I only met a couple of fathers the entire time. During a formative stage of a child’s schooling, most of my students didn’t have an involved dad around to help…
Conflicting Paths Forward in Education: Increasing Parent Engagement vs. Integrating Schools
Yesterday my wife and I attended an open house for our neighborhood elementary school, where potentially my oldest daughter may attend pre-k this fall. I say potentially because we have yet to make the decision to enroll her. Actually, she’s still currently enrolled at a pretty good private school less than 5 miles from our…
everyday fatherhood 