Rhetorical Question of the Day

Is the third son the most destructive of the kids, or is Old Wahoo just becoming more negligent? There's crayon all over a window to prove the answer.

Words of the Week

Don't worry, be happy.

"The truth is, there's no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when?"

- Richard Carlson, "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff"

Fatherhood and the Scooter Blues

Razor scooters are cool. All the kids have them nowadays because they look good and they go fast. What more could a kid want?

While Razors are cool, Old Wahoo is not. The two oldest Wahoo kids have Razors, and I love that they want to ride them to school. It's great exercise, and it's easy to get them excited to use them. 

There's a problem, though. Razors are supposed to fold easily. All you need to do is flick a switch, and presto! the Razor folds into an easily transportable vehicle. Only it's not that easy for me, especially with the 5-year-old's scooter. Lately, I've tried and tried in vain to fold up the Razor as he heads into kindergarten. Finally, I give up and just throw the scooter in the back of the stroller and head back home. It's no big deal, really, except my feelings of fatherly ineptitude have increased greatly, and I have much more important things in which to feel inept. 

Fatherhood's not supposed to be easy. The kids are supposed to see you fail because they need to know that nobody's perfect.

Except I want to be. And sometimes, though, I know this is unrealistic and impossible, I want them to be perfect, too.

Words of the Week

I hope we have wise children.

"A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke."

- Proverbs 13:1

My Inner Clark Griswold

Some people fear becoming their parents. Not me. I fear becoming Clark Griswold, the hapless father portrayed by Chevy Chase in the "Vacation" movies.

Unfortunately, Old Wahoo experienced a Griswold moment on the way back from our family's spring break trip. During a restroom and lunch break at a McDonald's, my youngest son, in desperate need of a nap, kicked off his shoes while throwing a mini-tantrum. While Mrs. Wahoo struggled with the Moose, I picked up the shoes while I also took care of three bags of Happy Meals and fries.

We pack the kids away without further incident, and after eating lunch, two of the three boys fall asleep. Mission accomplished, right? Well, when we came to our next rest stop three hours later, we could not find the shoes, and when we arrived home later that evening, the shoes still could not be found.

Finally, the next day as I unloaded groceries from the back of the van, I found one shoe wedged in the luggage rack atop the car. Alas, the other shoe still was missing.

Since leaving the shoes on top of the car was definitely a Griswold moment, I have tried to shake it off and look for the bright side, just like Clark W. did in the movies.

Sure, I lost my son's favorite (and best) pair of shoes, but imagine how amazing it is that one shoe made the 428-mile trek from Berkeley Springs, W.Va., to Detroit.

And yes, I did leave the shoes on top of the car, but it could have been worse. I could have left my coffee there, or the portable DVD player, and either one of those calamities could have made the trip unbearable. A friend also said it would have been worse to leave a kid on top of the van.

Or, as Clark Griswold did, I could have left the dog tied to the bumper.

Words of the Week

Wisdom from a wise, wise man.

Why aren't we flying? Because getting there is half the fun. You know that. 

- Clark Griswold, "Vacation"

Vacation Time

A trip to the beach.