Parents Clash over Kindergarten Thanksgiving Costumes

For many years, kindergartners at Claremont Elementary in Southern CA have celebrated Thanksgiving by dressing up as pilgrims and Native Americans and sharing a feast. But on Tuesday, when the kids meet for their turkey and songs, they won’t be wearing their hand-made bonnets, headdresses and fringed vests due to political correctness run amok.

Michelle Raheja, a university professor and mother of a kindergartner at Condit Elementary School, wrote to her daughter’s teacher. “I’m sure you can appreciate the inappropriateness of asking children to dress up like slaves (and kind slave masters), or Jews (and friendly Nazis), or members of any other racial minority group who has struggled in our nation’s history.”

The absurd opinions expressed by Raheja, who like so many of us (myself include) has some indian blood in her DNA, have caused the timid school board to cave in to her demands to ban these costumes at the school.

Needless to say this nonsense has struck a chord with parents who are fed up with people pushing their political correctness agendas down the throats of others at the expense of children and long standing traditions in our country.

For more on the story: Thanksgiving Costumes at Claremont

Extraordinary Story of a Father and His Autistic Son

Source: AOL Time Warner

Boys Autism May Have Saved the Both of Them

Christopher was laughing as the father and son were pulled farther and farther from Ponce Inlet, Florida. As the pair lunged for buoys — and missed — Christopher couldn’t help but giggle. It was this spirit that helped ground Marino, the father said.

“It was a big entertainment roller coaster for him, that’s what got me through it — because he wasn’t freaking out,” said Marino, 46. But after four hours at sea without a life vest, and after it became obvious that rescue operations had ceased for the night, jellyfish began to sting the pair. That began to “freak Christopher out,” his father said.

While Christopher is almost nonverbal in his communication, he and his father use catch phases from Disney movies, which the boy loves, to communicate. After four hours, the currents picked up, and Christopher began to drift from his father’s reach. Because of the darkness, they couldn’t see each other. So Marino shouted out part of a phrase to his son. “To infinity,” Marino shouted, referencing one of Christopher’s favorite lines from the movie “Toy Story.” “And beyond,” Christopher shouted back, pumping his fist in the air like movie character Buzz Lightyear.

The call and response went on for a while, with Marino choosing different phrases and Christopher yelling back. But over the course of an hour, Christopher’s voice faded until his father couldn’t hear him anymore.

“That’s when I resigned myself to the fact that he was gone,” Marino told CNN, saying he believed his son had been pulled under the water.

At the time, Marino said, he thought about giving up, until he thought of his daughter Angela. She had just registered for ballroom dance classes, and he told himself over and over he would live to see her dance. “I just kept thinking about her and how I was not going to leave her without a brother and her father in the same day — not on my watch,” he told CNN. “It was the visual of her that kept me going.”

Marino used other tricks to keep his mind focused in the 81-degree water. He remembered going to the Ponce Inlet museum, which highlighted a lighthouse. He then set out to use the lighthouse as a guide for himself, so he would know how far he was from shore. He alternated doing the “doggie paddle” and floating on his back with his ears in the water, the way his son loved to. He would float on his back and watch the bright stars. He wished on four shooting stars that flew by and used constellations in the sky to know what direction to go if he drifted away.

Under the stars and in the dark Atlantic, he turned to his spirituality, realizing his life was in God’s hands. A religious medal rested on his chest.

As morning turned, Marino tried to stay alert for sounds that might mean help was near. Hearing a boat motor, he waved frantically. Soon, a group of fishermen pulled him aboard their boat. A flash of light from the medallion had caught the eye of one of the anglers, who shouted at his brother at the helm to stop the boat, one of Marino’s rescuers told him.

The first thing Marino asked was if the men had heard anything about his son, but they hadn’t.
Marino began to grieve. It had been nearly eight hours since he had last seen his son, and he believed he was gone for good. He wept.

When the U.S. Coast Guard arrived, Marino asked them, too, about Christopher, but they said they had not found him. The Coast Guard crew asked if he wanted to go to the hospital, but he decided to stay on the boat so the search for Christopher wouldn’t be disrupted. But Marino chose not to watch the water as the search went on. “I chose to be down below, because I didn’t want to see them pull up on Christopher being face-down in the water,” he said. So the Coast Guard vessel steamed on. After more than an hour, the boat went full throttle, jolting Marino backward in his space below deck.

Suddenly, the boat was idling, and Marino was asked to come topside. “That was my personal green mile,” Marino told CNN, a reference to what some people call the walk on death row from the cell to the execution chamber. “I took three steps up the green mile to the back of the deck, and they pointed to the helicopter and they said, ‘You see that helicopter? It has your son on it, and he is fine,’ ” Marino recalled a crew member saying. Marino was so excited he began “kissing all the Coast Guard guys.”

The father and son were reunited at the emergency room at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, where they were treated for dehydration. “We were both very weak, tired and thirsty,” Marino said. “But I reached out and held his hand and could tell from the same sparkle in his eye that he was going to be fine.”

While Christopher can’t truly communicate what he felt during those hours alone at sea, his father hopes that one day, he will be able to tell him what he felt alone in the Atlantic. The one thing Marino knows is that his son still loves the water and that the experience hasn’t taken away that special comfort from him.

“It may be a while before we go back to a beach,” Marino said. “But he still loves the water. He’s already gotten back in a pool.”

Tapping Dads from Temecula

The Temecula Tapping Dads are 18 men, from Temecula and Murrieta California, 26 to 54 years old that have endeared themselves to millions of Americans with their performances on NBC Television’s “America’s Got Talent“. They’re business owners, entrepreneurs, construction workers, athletes, pilots, high-tech workers and teachers that all have one thing in common… they have daughters who have belonged to the Temecula Dance Company.

For more information on these 18 tap dancing dads read this article in a local Temecula paper: Tap Dancing Dads Hit National Airwaves Tonight (Sept 3rd 8 pm).

Here’s a YouTube clip (2:45) of them performing: Tapping Dads

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Paid Leave for New Dads

I’m the father of four and I don’t recall ever getting paid leave when my children were born. It never occurred to me that something was out of line about that, but the subject of paid leave for dads is making it’s rounds and the idea of paid leave for dads is gaining some traction.

A recent law passed in Massachusetts, The Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act, has provided some energy to those who would like to see benefits granted to women available for men as well. An article at WSJ.com, A Legal Brouhaha Over Leave For New Dads, covers the buzz surrounding this and is worth reading as it may be a snapshot of the future that lies ahead.

‘Why Not Dads’ Video Wins

A mom’s video, ‘Why Not Dads?’, wins a video competition put on by her local news organization The Union. Monique Derenia put together this very interesting 13 minute documentary about the lives of stay-at-home dads in San Francisco.

The video gives the viewer a glimpse into the mindset of a stay-at-home dad, including the trying moments when the uniqueness of what they do for living crashes up against what “society” is used to.

Frustrated Dad Kills Xbox

A dad in Mechanicsville, VA finally snapped and took it out on his kids Xbox by nailing it to a tree.

Here’s his wife’s version of the story:

My husband had repeatedly warned our 3 boys about their behavior while playing the Xbox. Tuesday, after I arrived home from work, our oldest son told me to look in the backyard at “Dad’s artwork”. Well, I wasn’t surprised to see the Xbox proudly displayed on the nearest tree… way to go Honey!!!!!

I expect we’ll see a rash of personal computers murdered in similar fashion by dads frustrated with their kids spending all their time online. There should be a law against the media exposing these stories… it’s just going to lead to more violence against our games, PCs, TVs, and other helpless victims.

Source: iReport.com

Randy Pausch Was a Great Dad

Randy Pausch died on July 25th 2008, but this incredible dad left behind a wake that will continue affecting people’s lives all over the world. Not long after he learned he had terminal cancer and had just months to live Randy gave his now famous “Last Lecture” at Carnegie Mellon University.

Knowing he had a limited number of days left to share with his wife and 3 young children Randy set out to enjoy those days as fully as possible and to leave behind what he could for his children. His Last Lecture was given for his kids and over 10 million of us have been fortunate to have been able to watch it ourselves. It’s powerful, spot on, and a must-watch.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

For the video in larger format visit: The Last Lecture on Dadz TV

Here’s a pic of Randy and his family dressed up as the incredibles on his last Halloween with us. It’s the perfect costume for Randy and his family and serves as a message for all of us dads: Have fun! Enjoy life! Be a kid for your kids sake!

More information about Randy Pausch:

Squidoo page about Randy

The Last Lecture book Website

Thank you Randy and rest in peace.

So Sad to Learn of Tony Snow’s Death

Tony Snow had been battling cancer for some time with strength and courage. Well he finally lost his battle early this morning when he died at just 53 years of age.

I was a big fan of Tony’s when I discovered him on Fox News Sunday. No doubt he was a great father and will be sorely missed by his family. Our condolences go out to them.

Marine Watches Birth of His Baby from Iraq

“Hi, I’m your daddy,” Marine Lance Cpl. Michael Cintron informed his newborn son, Michael James.

Sitting in Iraq 6,000 miles from Brooklyn, Cpl. Cintron got to watch his newborn son being born. Aside from the awesome technology involved in allowing this event to happen, thanks go out to a nonprofit organization called Freedom Calls. They’ve been working hard to help soldiers stay connected with their loved ones regardless of the distance separating them. No doubt this new father is thrilled to have “been there” during this special moment in life.

The baby weighed in at 7 pounds, 3 ounces and the new dad weighed in with a proud : “Look! He’s looking at me!”

We thank you for your service Cpl. Cintron and welcome you to fatherhood!

Why are car seats for kids mandatory?

If you’re OK with the nanny-state telling you how to raise your children then please don’t watch this video. I’ve often wondered whether car seats were more hype then true safety devices that made a difference. It’s always annoyed me when I need to take a car seat out of one car to load it into another for the little kids.

This 20 minute of Steven Levitt is interesting and worth watching regardless of how you feel about car seats. The question it leaves me with is on what basis did the government give itself the right to order us by law to place our children in car seats? Was it strictly a way to appear to be doing something for our kids?

What’s next? In-car helmets? Don’t think it can’t happen… I grew up when there was no seat belt law, no helmets for biking, and the government didn’t dare intrude on these personal decisions parents made on how to raise their children safely. Better stop before I get onto a rant….

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