1.) Shave and a haircut- get him a gift certificate to his favorite barbershop or coiffeur. To make it extra special, get him the Works complete with a barber shave- find a place that gives the old-school hot towel & straight blade service, there’s nothing better.

Here in LA, there is Denver-based Floyd’s Barbershop is a solid option. The shop is wrapped in Rock n’ roll posters, the haircuts are straight-forward and the shaves & 30 second shoulder massages are memorable.

2.) Rejuvenate- maybe dad will appreciate a good massage or yoga class. The key is to find a place that comes close to fitting his sensibility, the key is to give him an experience he will be open too. Not every dad will appreciate being thrown into a two-hour yoga class, if so- it is a wonderful way for him to re-boot.

Locally, my preference is Burke Williams Spa for massage in Santa Monica, or Exhale in Venice for yoga.

3.) Give him the Gift of Food- Maybe the guy appreciates a good BBQ, most do. Introduce him to different type of BBQ. Get him a gift certificate to a Korean BBQ restaurant, Southern BBQ or Brazilian BBQ.

4.) A Night Out- Maybe he likes bowling, or likes to shoot pool or maybe catch the game on the big screen. Package a night out with a (handmade) coupons to the local bowling lanes, that auto show coming to town or find the place with the best pool tables in town and pre-pay a night out for him. The idea is to treat him to a night he may not normally indulge in.

5.) Booty Bucks- Wives can take advantage of my article from last year and download printable ‘Booty Bucks’. They only come in denominations of ’10′ so you will have to be creative when giving change.

Related Articles;
Unique Father’s Day gift ideas from a Dad
Free money for Father’s Day

If your wife does breastfeed you may want to consider getting her some cute pajamas designed specifically for nursing. For those dads out there who may not quite have a grasp on the differences between regular pajamas and nursing pajamas – let me provide some insight. Nursing wear tends to have very efficient and strategically placed snaps, gaps and “windows” to provide both momma and baby “access” to make the breast-feeding process both easy and discreet. I must admit this is some pretty exciting technology.

The stuff pictured above is from the fine folks at NursingPJs.Com, who have a fine collection of nursing wear that will please momma, baby and most definitely you (Dad). But be careful Dad and choose wisely or you may find yourself ‘expecting’ again.

Related Sites:
NursingPJs.Com | nursing wear, pajamas & maternity apparel
Tummy Style | Maternity sleepwear, pajama sets & lingerie
Mommy Bliss | Maternity sleepwear
Motherhood Nursingwear | Nursing pajamas & sleepwear

For food, we tapped a couple of our favorite local haunts hear in West LA, Dos Hermanos catering and Paddy Mac. Dos Hermanos has been around for 20+ years and like the name suggests, is a couple brothers originally from the Jalisco region of Mexico who have been serving up distinctly regional fare out of their small yet immaculate kitchen. There menu is short but these incredibly fresh dishes are memorable with favorites like savory chicken or cheese enchiladas, hearty Birria de la Jalisco and an almost cassoulette-style fajita. You cannot beat their price at $4.50 a person, you get an entree with rice and beans, salad (with dressing), and chips & salsa.

One of the few things our son can eat seemingly endless amounts of is macaroni & cheese. Always kid-friendly and parent-approved, we decided to order some of the famed Mac and Cheese from Paddy Mac. They have a diverse menu (all Mac & Cheese) including the standard, The Ship, with five kinds of cheese (pictured above) – you know the kids won’t go hungry. Our personal favorite is the Super Mac which slips in puree of cauliflower and carrot for a super vitamin boost, which goes virtually undetected amidst all that cheesey goodness. Other items on their menu seem to cater to a more mature palette like their Gourmet Mac (braised leeks, mushrooms and a touch of Gruyere) and the Old MACdonald’s Farm (bacon, broccoli and pockets of goat cheese & feta), regardless all recipes are perfectly balanced, thus always reminding you that what you have on you plate is some fresh and fancy Mac and Cheese.

My wife was in charge of fun and games, and considering we were hosting a party full of 2-4 year olds, she kept all the games non-competitive. Here is the break-down of the activities;

• She had the kids make a big circle and grab the ends of the Play Parachute while singing “Ring Around the Rosey” and other songs.
• When that started to get a bit tired, I (tried) to up the ante, by coming out with dozens of balloons that I had previously blown up and tossed them on top of the outstretched parachute. Unfortunately, we all quickly discovered one half of the kids wanted to pop the balloons while the other half was scared crazy of the popping noise. Note to self; strike the balloon surprise from next toddler bash.
• Musical Chairs with an equal number of chairs (nobody gets bumped out of the game), to reduce mid-party melt-downs.
• Simon Says – you really can’t go wrong with this one.
• Duck, Duck, Goose – fun for days.
• We have learned that setting up a “Chill-out” Zone for the kids is great to have. We set up our little beach tent in the corner of the backyard, so kids could slip in there, lie down and catch their breath.
• We set-up a kids table filled with Play-Dough and cutters, rollers and stamps for those who wanted to relax with one of their favorite quiet activities.

While all of this was going on, I was able to clear the food and set up the cake and coffee. The light was quickly fading, which works out well with the theme of the party. As our sleepy guests filtered out my wife gave each of them a clear gift bag of her homemade butter cookies (*pictured above) in the shape of Zzzz’s and wished them all “sweet dreams.”

PARTY TOOLBOX:
Paddy Mac
Dos Hermanos, 4510 Inglewood Blvd Culver City, CA 90230 (310) 391.1303
La Pinata Party Rentals, 1711 Lincoln Blvd (@ Superba), Venice, CA 90291 (310) 306.3348 [*they have kid's height tables and chairs]

Two halves unscrew for easy cleaning and the lid snaps in place to keep snacks inside. BpA-free, Phthalate-free and PVC-free.

9+ months

$6.50 [+shipping] at Belly Dance Baby

Framed Personal Photos – Take a minute to burn a CD with some favorite family photos, either jump in the car and take them to be printed, print them yourself or upload them to Shutterfly (or the likes of), next buy a single frame or a set of frames at your favorite store and viola, you have a thoughtful gift of memories that the wife, grandparents or the in-laws will adore.

Classic Toys Under $10 – There’s a number of classic toys (*that aren’t choked with phthalates or dipped in lead-heavy paints) that I would recommend for either stocking stuffers or as solid little holiday gifts for your favorite niece or nephew when visiting for the holidays. There is a solid list of classic inducted into the Strong National Museum of Play (here are a few);

• Slinky
• Travel-sized Checkers Set
• Wooden Alphabet Blocks
• Small Lego Set
• Silly Putty

Gardening Starter Set – Get a good sized planters pot and fill it with the following; a few bag of seeds (flowers, herbs are very hearty and forgiving), a hand shovel and rake, gloves, and if you want to make the kit complete buy yourself a small bag of soil and put it into a zip-lock freezer bag.

Or, if you’re like me and running out of time or don’t want the DIY approach, check out the cute Kids Gardening Kits that are available online (starting at $20 [+ shipping]).

Emergency Play & Craft Kit – I have recently written a post about this ingenuous piece of packaging. The Momergency Kit is a bag filled with stuff. Stuff your kids can use to do various activities and craft to pass the time when your stuck at the airport, waiting in holiday traffic or just killing time. Granted the DIY Dad in me is tempted to run to an office supply store and make one myself, the most redeeming aspect of this little gem is that a portion of the proceeds go to the Heifer International to fight poverty and hunger.

Well according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission there are some safety tips to follow this Trick or Treat Season. I will offer the unabridged version of their tips as they seem to (rightly) focus on a few obvious hazards.

Decorations Safety;

• Whenever possible do not use candles and when you do keep them away from kids, general foot-traffic and their costumes.
• When prepping your house for Trick-or-Treaters, clean the pathway leading up to your front door of all obstacles and make sure it is well lit.
• Don’t overload extension cords and only use healthy UL tested products

Costumes Safety;

• If wearing a mask, make sure they can breath well enough and make sure they can see (including peripheral vision)
• If they are going to be out on the streets Trick or Treating make sure they carry a flashlight and have reflective or light colored fabric or material on their outfit.
• Choose costume that are “flame resistant” which means they will be less likely to catch on fire.
• Weapons (swords, knives, et al.) should be soft and bendable or collapsible in nature.
• Make sure costume is weather appropriate, which may mean additional layers under outfit.

Treats;

• Make sure parent/guardian(s) check all candy, toys or treats (especially for young ones) for tampering or choke hazard

Like most holidays, a few products are being recalled for safety reasons. Crate & Barrel out of Northbrook, IL has recalled thirty thousand Halloween Ghost Tealight Burners for burn and fire hazards. There have been five reports of the tealight holders igniting and one report of the holder becoming excessively hot. Two consumers suffered burns to the hand. Just by looking at this product (above), I can tell you without doubt that many more people have been burned by this product – not necessarily bad ones but burns nonetheless.

Coyne’s & Company, out of Minneapolis MN, is recalling all fourteen thousand of their Casper the Friendly Ghost figurines due to excessive amounts of lead. These figurine stand approximately three inches tall and are made from resin and paper. Please check the original press release for model numbers and additional details as there are many different figurine designs included in this recall.

Sited Links;
Tag Home Decor | Ghost Tealight Recall Information
Halloween Figurines Recalled by Coyne’s & Company for Lead Hazard
Ghost Tealight Holders Recalled by Trade Associates Group and Crate & Barrel…
CPSC 2008 Halloween Safety Tips

As parents know, they days of simple birthday parties are long gone. The themes and concepts seem to get more and more elaborate. And it is our challenge to make the whole thing seem effortless, right? My wife and I have been steadily downgrading the kids’ parties for the sake of sanity. We now have it whittled down to neighborhood kids, a few close schoolmates and best buddies. That is it.

Normally on the weekends I count him as my apprentice, whether I’m pulling weeds, fixing the fascia on the house or mending the fence. He’s had his own toolbox and tool belt for awhile now. So my wife figured he would enjoy a construction theme for his birthday.

Boy did he, our oldest son turned 4 last week. So we decided to invite a few kids over (twelve) to a Construction Themed Birthday Party (“Dress for Mess”). The festivities included lightening rounds of hot potato, musical chairs and duck-duck-goose. Mind you, we made all the games non-competitive. Meaning, for Musical Chairs we had equal number of chairs (12 kids, 12 chairs) to avoid the whole “you’re out” (meltdown). Which worked out well.

When the kids arrived they were given a yellow plastic hardhat and brought to an activity table where they could personalize it with stickers and such. They were each given a kid-sized work belt, that they could write their name on and draw all over. It was stuffed with little party favors (stickers, pencil and ruler set, brushes and travel size paint set).

The main attraction was three cardboard houses fashioned from appliance boxes (pictured above). I got the  boxes at the local dump a few days before and used a crazy amount of duct tape to hold them together, in true “dad” style. My wife bought small paint roller kits, cheap paint brushes and matching plastic drip trays with large bottles of washable tempera paint. With this set up the kids got to paint the houses, inside and out. They loved it.

After lunch (wings, drumsticks, homemade mac & cheese and large chunks of watermelon), the kids were treated to a kinder, gentler pinata shaped like a construction cone. This concept came from Family Magazine (awful directions), and is made from cardboard and fluorescent orange construction paper. Note to the parents – just purchase a lightweight plastic construction cone at the hardware or automotive store and attach a trap door on the underside rather than trying to make it from scratch (with cardboard and paper).

Each kid got to pull one of the pieces of caution tape attached to the bottom of the cone. One of the pieces is attached to a trapdoor and when the pull it the door open and the candy drops. Whoopee! Good times! And best of all no injuries.

The grand finale was, of course, the Backhoe Birthday cake. Again, this was from the same Family Magazine article. It came out quite well. My wife and sister-in-law did a fantastic job. The main portion of the cake is fashioned from a store-bought pound cake, a ton of yellow frosting, twix bars, a twinkie for the shovel, yellow licorice, chocolate glazed donuts, crushed Oreo cookies (dirt) and a couple red M&M’s. You know something light for the kids (Bwahahahahaaaa).

My sister Cheryl is the best family baker, hands down. To this day I talk very excitedly about some of her specialties, her Whoopie Pies top the list. Like all old school deserts there is absolutely no redeeming nutritional value to them. They are made with buttermilk, chocolate, and lots of butter and sugar. Needless to say, they’re not low-calorie, high fiber or all-natural so if you’re looking for that perfect desert crammed with minced beets, flax seed or spinach – move on…

Unfortunately, I am not obliged to hand out family recipes (that would be blasphemy) but Jennifer Tolley at JustBaking.Com has served up a damn good recipe for these little handful of heaven. If you aren’t impressed or you happen to stumble upon another recipe, let me explain something – if it has a whip cream filling it is not a Whoopie Pie!

So to all the dads out there interested in building a little family tradition with the kids, grab a recipe you think you can handle and master it with the kids. Your building lasting memories for them and training an army to make your favorite desert – you win, they win.

(Photo Via JustBaking.Net)