I’m hesitant to admit this in public, but 2020 was a great year for me and my family. The world was, and still is, neck-deep in a pandemic; many lost their jobs; many lost their lives. I am not blind to the pain I witnessed in so many. Amongst all that pain, however, there were…
Category: Tales of Fatherhood
Stories of fatherhood from our team of dads.
Reno Dads Podcast Episode 27: Parenting in the Pandemic – What We’ve Learned
Reno Dad Josh Shinn asked a great question to our group about how we were managing a year into the pandemic. What have we learned? What are we looking forward to when we return to “normal?” What should “normal” be, anyway? Jake, David, and Jonathan all hopped on Zoom (naturally) to chat about how things…
Inside the 2011 US Embassy Evacuation from Libya
Wednesday, February 23, 2011 Goodbye 10 years ago today I put my wife and baby boy on a ferry in the middle of a storm to cross the Mediterranean Sea and the escape the imminent collapse of Libya. After kissing my wife and son goodbye, I stayed behind. I didn’t know when, or more accurately,…
Always Angry: Lessons Learned from Hal Runkel’s ScreamFree Parenting
In Marvel’s 2012 movie The Avengers, one of my favorite scenes is when the Chitauri, a race of extraterrestrial shape shifters, invade New York. It’s in this scene when we, the audience, get to see the Avengers assemble for the first time on the big screen— a very cool moment for an old comic book…
Reno Dads Podcast Episode 26: Dad Spotlight: David Gamble Jr. and Diaz Dixon
For the past few weeks here at Reno Dads, we’ve been wrestling with some pretty big questions about how to contribute to the conversation that’s been happening in our community regarding race inequality. Generally speaking, we try to share stories that we hope will connect with families and dads, oftentimes focusing on the things that…
Perspectives on Parenting from Higher Education
I got into teaching English in higher education, in part, because I love learning. College was fun for me, even in spite of its challenges; in fact, the challenges were what made it so fun. Discovering new ideas and new ways of looking at and living in the world were invigorating. They still are— that’s…
Reno Dads Podcast Episode 25: Corona Check In
In this episode, we get on the “Zoom Happy Hour” bandwagon. It’s no BBC sing along or surprise Hamilton appearance, but better late than never, right?! RenoDads founders Mike and David, along with long time contributors Josh and Jake, as well as newbie Steve talk about dad life in the current pandemic environment. Dave’s got…
Navigating the Autism Spectrum
Many people may know that April is autism awareness month, but what most of you don’t know is that my son has autism. Don’t know much about autism? Most parents don’t really understand it until they are told their child is on the autistic spectrum. Autism Spectrum Disorder is defined as “A developmental disorder of…
Reno Dads Podcast Episode 24: My Worst Day as a Dad #DadFail
In this episode, we get a bit more “real” with our experiences as dads. Scott and Josh are in the studio to talk about their “not ready for Facebook” experiences — the ones that really make you question your own dad skills and whether or not you’re cut out for this whole “being a dad”…
The Time My Kid Fell Out of a Shopping Cart – Why Talking About It Helped Me Heal
I have an embarrassing involuntary bodily reaction that happens the moment before a child is about to get hurt. My shoulders seize upward, my eyes squint and I usually jump backward and then do a 180 mid air. It’s as if my brain and my body are trying to keep me from witnessing a horrible…
Be Safe, Explore and Discover the Joy of Cycling!
“Hey kids – watch this!” We can all guess how this story goes, right? About 25 years ago, when I was teaching my sons the joy of cycling and riding bikes, our whole family was out for a ride on a dirt trail. It was a great day – mild temperatures, helmets on and smiles…
3 Reasons Why Family Tailgates are More Than Just Football
It was late August, and I was backing out of my driveway on my way to the first Nevada football game of the 2019 season. As the garage was closing, my daughter, 2, screamed from her car seat, “My Wolf Pack chair!” I stopped the car and thought about it for a second. Does she…