3
Things I’m Loving, Reading, Watching or Doing
1) Best Teen Texts of 2025!
This guy’s Instagram is hilarious, mostly because people send him actual texts from their teens. This one felt especially on brand:
“I’m having friends over tomorrow. Can you and dad be out of the house? Dad specifically.” 😂😂😂
2) One Battle After Another
No, this isn’t a movie about our ongoing fight for sanity with five kids in youth sports. But it is a great movie that lets Leo do his thing and delivers plenty of action. Bonus points for me because it also features Fenster, aka Benicio del Toro.
3) Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
Being from Ohio, I had to read this one, and it didn’t disappoint. I have a soft spot for generational family saga novels, and this one hits all the notes: love, loss, secrets, and forgiveness. Would definitely recommend.
2
Quotes Worth Pondering
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” — Mary Oliver
“Practicing gratitude is how we acknowledge that there’s enough—and that we are enough.” — Brene Brown
1
Big Dad Idea
Health, Parenting, or Personal Growth
Family Yearly Meeting
Every new year, all seven of us gather for a short family meeting.
Not the full-scale meetings we used to do when the kids were little, complete with calendar updates, games, and color-coded plans. This version is much simpler.
My wife pulls out her beat-up planner full of sticky notes and paperclips and, starting in January of the previous year, walks us month by month through what we did, both individually and as a family. Not the mundane stuff—just the highlights like:
- Made the varsity soccer team
- Mom presented at a conference
- Our trip to Puerto Rico
- National Honor Society induction
- Dad launched a dad newsletter!
Along the way, it sparks great memories and plenty of “Oh yeah, I forgot we did that.”
I bite my tongue on the ‘back in my day’ speech. But I do want them to feel genuine gratitude for what they’ve accomplished and experienced.
After that, we go around and each person shares a few things they’re looking forward to in the year ahead: trips, school goals, sports, ideas. Nothing formal. Just thinking out loud and sharing with the family. It’s also important the kids get to hear about what my wife and I want to do as well.
We have some kids who could talk all day, others who offer two words and wait for a few gentle follow-up questions.
The whole thing takes about 30 minutes. We usually make it through with minimal interruptions, only one or two ‘Are we done yet?’s, and—if we’re lucky—no farts.
What I love most is that it’s more about recap and gratitude than resolutions and goals.
For us, that rhythm feels just right. Our kids already live with plenty of expectations, scoreboards, and markers. This is one small way to pause, reflect, and say: Look at what we did. Look at how far you’ve come. What do you look forward to this year?
Sometimes that’s more powerful than setting one more goal.
Do you have a New Year tradition that works for your family? Do share!
Thanks for reading, dads.
Let’s make this time count!
