Archives for October 2014

- - - | written by Jason on 10/25/2014 | - - -

How to Increase Your Odds of Saying Today Was a Good Day

The other day was really good. Nothing earth-shattering occurred, but it ended up just being really wonderful. After a decent night's sleep, I made a breakfast of eggs, sausage and cinnamon rolls. Then we all headed to the local Apple Store to see if the wifi on my phone was broken. It was, and out of warranty, to boot. (Not great.) We decided to upgrade and order new phones (Super great!) After chowing down on that new bacon stuffed crust pizza at Pizza Hut, we drove home and Kim and I enjoyed some peace and quiet in the yard while the kids napped. Afterwards, we took advantage of the wind …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/25/2014 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Yoga Joes Edition

• Check out these Yoga Joes, a collection of green army men doing popular yoga poses. Thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign, these are now a real thing! • Here's a fun interview I did with Kyle Hart, including a little insight to our parenting style...and advice for people in their early 20s. • These monster donuts couldn't be any easier to make, or more adorable. Just in time for Halloween! • Speaking of Halloween, I enjoyed this Candy Hierarchy chart. They're doing a new and improved one this year. • It's amazing to me how often I keep going back to Coffitivity. Who knew …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/22/2014 | - - -

One Chance Only Sale: Long Sleeve Tees!

Since we like making stuff way more than we like managing inventory, every once in a while, we create something we think is cool, take orders for a week or so, and then buy the exact number of goodies we need to fill those orders. So whether it’s two or two thousand, I get to make cool things, you get a chance to own them, and we don’t waste any money on stuff that takes up space in our basement. Now, does this mean we will never, ever, EVER offer this product again? Not necessarily. But if you see something you like, your best bet is to snag it while you can. Chances are it won’t be …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/18/2014 | - - -

Traveling with Kids is a Drag (and Other Thoughts from My First Daddy Daughter Business Trip)

The white dog bounded down the skinny green runway, chasing a stuffed animal attached to a steel cable. In just ten seconds, the race was over, and Yeti had her prize. Meanwhile, her best friend was looking on. After the steel cable was reset, this time with a small stuffed zebra, a trainer readied herself in front of the big box where Shiley stood poised. The trainer raised her hand while unlatching the door on the cage, and then dropped her arm to indicate it was time for the wench operator at the other end of the track to get that zebra moving. The door flung open, and a flash of fur and …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/18/2014 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Bacon Inside Pancakes Edition

• Bacon-embedded pancakes? Hells yeah! (Hat tip to Minette :) • Email overload putting a serious cramp in your life balance? Here's a helpful system for email productivity. • You have just got to check out this awesome waterfall swing. • I'm not sure why I'd ever need this incredibly realistic and incredibly cool Doritos pin, but I still kinda want it. • Kim and I are huge fans of Jimmy Fallon and his infectious childlike spirit. Gotta love this video of Good News and Good News :) Finally, some posts from around here you may have missed: • Book update: a cover, a release …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/11/2014 | - - -

Is It Your Job to Follow the Rules?

The animated movie The Croods tells the story of Grug, the stubborn patriarch of a family of cave people. He has protected his brood in the harsh world in which they live by carefully concocting a series of rules that limit their risks of being eaten. But when circumstances force the family out of their home an into a completely new environment, the rules are thrown into question and Grug struggles to adapt. This is one of my favorite scenes in the movie, an interchange between Grug and his rebellion teenage daughter, Eep: Grug: It’s my job to worry. It's my job to follow the …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/11/2014 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Edible Chocolate LEGOs Edition

• My son Ben is getting into LEGOs. I am sure he'd think these chocolate LEGOs designed by Akihiro Mizuuchi are even better. • Speaking of Ben, his special stuffed animal is Grover. Lucy's is Curious George. And Ginny's is Kermit the Frog. Photographer Anna Ream has a series of photos entitled "Comfort Objects" that capture the bond between children and their stuffed animals and security blankets. It's pretty sweet. And it reminds me that I have to do something fun like this for my kids before they outgrow their special friends. • I'm not sure what I think of this dude from Milwaukee who …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/4/2014 | - - -

Country Club Chef Serves Slice of Childhood with a Side of Awesomesauce

It can be easy to think of country clubs as the sort of places where Adultitis might like to hang out. Granted, it’s not a windowless cube farm, but it can invite a particular strain of Adultitis that implores us to take ourselves a little too seriously and make sure we don’t get our princess dress wet. But Chef Brian at the Rockford Country Club is a Champion of Childhood who’s keeping Adultitis on its toes. In celebration of back to school season, Brian created a menu that put some epicurean twists on old childhood favorites, a “culinary homage to cafeteria classics.” Here are some of the …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/4/2014 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Postcards for Ants Edition

• I'm not sure how she does it, but these "Postcards for Ants," a 365-day miniature painting project by Lorraine Loots, are amazing! • As a big fan of silly mustaches, I'm also a big fan of Mister Mellow's stick-on mustaches. • It seems like adults are always trying to figure out new ways to ruin everything. I enjoyed the article Trees don't need warning labels. Adults need to relax by Katherine Martinko. My favorite line: "What people should be more worried about is what kind of children we’re raising when risk is so carefully edited out of their lives." • My book publisher has its …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/1/2014 | - - -

Book Update: A Cover, A Release Date, and the End of a Long Beginning

There’s some big news to report on the book front. I have learned that Penguins Can’t Fly +39 Other Rules That Don’t Exist will officially be published on June 23, 2015. (That's the cover right there!) It will be published as paper-over-board, which is basically a hardcover book without the dust jacket. And it will cost $16.99. It was originally going to be $14.99, but after doing a more thorough cost estimate, St. Martin's Press decided to raise the price rather than cut corners on quality. They are really committed to making a beautiful book, which I couldn't be happier about. The …