Spring is almost here!

It's true! Gone will be the days of coldness and cabin fever. It's time to get outside and enjoy some time with the family outdoors.

My family and I have already started taking walks together, going to the park, and playing in the yard. This weekend was one of the first beautiful Sundays all winter. My wife and I thought it would be a great idea to take the kids to the park. As we enter the park, we realized we were not the only ones that had this idea. IT WAS PACKED! I have never seen so many people in the park at once. Truthfully, there had to be 10 times the number of people that are usually there.

The playground had so many kids in it, my wife and I had to split up to watch both of our boys. We've never had to do that before. Usually we find a bench to sit on near the entrance to the playground. This time there had to be 100 parents there, so good luck finding a seat!

We let the kids play for a few hours the took a quick walk around the park. Then I had the great idea to have an early supper (4pm) at the Friendly's down the road. Once again, so didn't every other parent apparently!

Friendly's was just as packed as the park. Once we finally got seated, we found out from the waitress that we were at least the 10th family to tell her we just came from the park.

Over all, it was a GREAT day, even with the crowds. This was definitely a great way to welcome Spring and warm weather.

Idea: Sledding

If you live in an area that receives copious amounts of snow, you are in luck! There is no better activity to let kids burn some energy than sledding.

The other day we received 12 inches of snow up here in New England. My children were very excited as it was the first snow of the season. Once the snow tapered down and the roads were safe, we took a short trip to the city park and tackled some major hills. This is the most energy my kids were able to burn since the fall ended. Needless to say they slept well that night.

It was the first time my younger son went sledding. He was timid at first, but after a few hills, he could not get enough. Now he continues to ask me daily to go again.

There are other fun activities to do outside when there is snow on the ground:

• Snowboarding
• Build a snowman
• Snowball fight
• Build a snow-fort
• Let them help shovel
• Snow-angels

Now obviously this all depends on the consistency of the snow and the amount that has fallen. Given the right conditions, you can enjoy days of fun outside during the winter!

Preparing for a Road Trip

My family and I are heading to Ohio immediately after Christmas. The drive usually takes us 12 hours. That's not too bad until you take into consideration we have 3 young children. Since this is not our first trip there, we are a little prepared.

Here is our advice:

• Bring portable DVD players: we do not believe in letting our children watch television all the time, but for the sake of our own sanity, portable DVD players are a must. We save DVDs we purchased the kids have not seen yet for the road trips. The only problem we have with portable DVD players is they seem to only last a year before the laser dies (which you can repair, but it costs more money than just buying a new one). The most recent one we bought was a 9" screen with two wireless headsets. That worked well since both our boys wanted to watch a show and we do not have to worry about tangled wires. On Amazon.com there is even a portable LCD screen that has a port for a Wii.

• Pack snacks and meals. In an effort to save drive time, we pack snacks and meals for the whole family. Bring a small cooler full of juice packs, sodas, sandwiches, crackers, cookies, and anything else your family enjoys. This way, when you stop for bathroom breaks you are not tempted to buy junk food at the convenience store or burgers at McDonald's, saving money and eating healthier.

• Take along crayons and coloring books. These distract the kids for usually no more that 20 minutes at a time. We tend to toggle back and forth between coloring and movies. Just make sure you take the crayons back when the kids get tired of coloring. Some cars have heaters on the floor. If a crayon gets dropped on a vent, it can melt and cause all sorts of headaches trying to clean it.

• Do not take the toll roads. One thing my wife and I have learned is that it does not take much longer to drive on alternate routes and you can save a ton of money. You do not pay all the tolls. Gas stations on toll highways are always more expensive. If you want to take a longer break and maybe enjoy a hot meal, you can easily find a restaurant. When driving in bad weather, it is sometimes safer to stop and stay overnight in a hotel. This is easier when on the 'back roads'.

• Buy a GPS device. Sort of self explanatory. Road construction happens. Traffic gets re-routed. You get lost! Not anymore. Its kind of like fighting back against a 'Catch 22'.

• Bring enough music for you and your spouse to enjoy for the entire trip (or get a Sirius radio unit). Drive far enough and you can find and lose dozens of radio stations. This can be annoying. Nip this in the bud by bringing your own music. If you and your spouse like different music, you can alternate genres every hour or so. Very relaxing.

• Enjoy the experience! Think of it like this Buddhist quote states: "Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment."

Idea: Keeping Kids Active During the Winter

For the past two weeks, my older son has been misbehaving at school. He even got sent to the principal's office, which is unheard of. My wife and I could not think of any reason he was behaving this way. That is, until a friend of ours made a suggestion.

He said maybe it is because he is not active any more and he has 'unused' energy. That got us thinking. The last time he played a sport was in October with soccer. The last time he played outside was before Thanksgiving at the park. Now that it is cold out, we stay cooped up inside. Maybe our friend is on to something!

As I am writing this, I have not yet done any physical activities with my son, but I do have a few ideas:

• Ice skating
• Rock-wall climbing (local place)
• Martial arts
• Roller skating/blading
• Hiking/letterboxing

I look forward to these activities this winter. I am going to start with hiking and letterboxing, since it is still nice enough outside to enjoy a short hike.

If you have never heard of letterboxing, it is an old 'treasure hunt' activity. People post hidden letterboxes in random places that you have to find and stamp. Check it out at the official letterboxing site : http://www.letterboxing.org/. Its something I have wanted to try for a little while now.

Next, I'll switch to the indoor activities. My second priority to have my son try martial arts. He will burn energy, learn to defend himself, and learn better discipline. There are numerous places locally, so it should be no problem finding one that fits our schedule.

If anyone has any suggestions as to which form of martial arts is best for 6-8 year olds, please add a comment and let me know what you think. I have never taken any form of martial arts, so it is Greek to me.

Top Frugal Gifts for Dad

The economy is affecting the way we all buy gifts this holiday season. Budgets are getting tightened like never before seen. Most dads are like me and do not want a gift, like usual. The problem is most wives are like mine and insist on still buying gifts.

If you must buy a gift for that special Dad, here are my choices:

1. A new cell phone

Most cell phone companies offer large discounts to subscribers to upgrade their current phone. Instead of paying $100+, you may be able to get dad a new Blackberry. Avoid phones with full keyboards as most guys do not text and do not have fingers small enough to use the keyboard. Also avoid flip phones as most men will break these quickly (I've gone through three flip-phones in the past two years).

2. Cigar of the month membership

This is the gift that keeps on giving all year long. Instead of buying dad a humidor this holiday season, get him a subscription to a cigar of the month club. He will enjoy the variety throughout the year. Plus, you do not have to worry about selecting a good cigar; that job is taken care of for you. Check out www.cigarmonthclub.com.

3. Wii zapper/blaster/light gun

If the dad you are buying for is into video games and already has a Wii, the variety of attachments available are almost endless. You can purchase one for around $20 online. There are so many varieties available right now. I will have an entire post on the brackets available very soon.

4. Golf lessons

Most driving ranges are closed, but the pro shop is usually open all year. Take advantage of this and buy your guy a few lessons. Even one lesson will improve his game. He will be very appreciative (to my wife: hint, hint).

5. Gift certificates

I don't mean the usual gift certificates to Applebee's or Target. Most dads would love a Dunkin Donuts gift certificate. Another great gift certificate would be for an oil change at the local garage.

Please feel free to provide feedback on what you think good frugal gifts for dads are.

Living with Diabetes

The night before my older son's birthday (and birthday party), he spent the whole night waking up to pee and to drink water. He woke up early in the morning and threw up. Being the independent young man he is, he just grabbed a towel and cleaned it up, then went back to bed. When I went to wake him up later on in the morning, he was extremely lethargic, pale, and had a fever.

My wife and I were so worried, we decided to cancel his party and take him to the hospital immediately. I stayed home with my younger son and she went to the urgent care with him. She called me an hour later to tell me our suspicions were correct: he had diabetes.

We did not know a thing about diabetes, and we were very scared. Was this a terminal disease? Would he ever be the same happy little boy he was a few days ago? We needed help.

He spent a week at the children's hospital. While he was recovering, the doctors and nurses educated us better than my highest expectations. They taught us about insulin, the pancreas, blood glucose levels, injections, symptoms of highs or lows, and many more pearls of wisdom.

My son got better during that week. Over the next two months we learned to manage his blood glucose. The first few days after he came home were the toughest. He was still scared of shots, and it did not make it easy to give him four shots a day. I had to hold him down while my wife gave him the injections the first day. At breakfast on the second day, instead of holding him down I told him, "Daddy doesn't have to hold you if you sit still. You can do it like a big boy all by your self. Just don't move." Surprisingly, that worked. From that point on he sat still and by the third day he wasn't even flinching for his shots.

It has been almost a year since he was diagnosed. Everything is going great. He's learned to test his own blood sugar. He has no problems at school to get help from the school nurse. We even have an appointment to get him on a pump so he doesn't need to have four shots a day.

For his upcoming birthday, my wife and I are planning a big party. We are going to rent out a roller skating hall and let him invite all his friends. He deserves it.

Kids: The Computer Gurus

Learning how to use the computer seems to be second nature to kids lately. My kids turn the computer on, log in, and open up programs using the mouse without a single question for Mom or Dad.

That's unbelievable! I remember when I was a cable-guy, I did an install at a college professor's house. Once I finished the install, I asked her if she needed me to show her how to get online. She said she did need help. I already had the computer on, so I showed her how to open Internet Explorer and surf the net. When we were done, she asked me to show her how to shut down the computer. I showed her where "Start" was, and how to log off. The computer shut off. Then she dropped the bombshell of a question: "So do I click on 'Start' again to turn it on?" I'm not kidding people.

So the point of the story is that you do not need to show children how to use the computer, you have to supervise them while on it. Kids are not afraid to click on every icon they see like many adults are. They do not carry the burden of paying to fix the computer when they break it. They do not worry about viruses, spyware, and malware taking screen shots and stealing your passwords. For that reason, you have to direct them to websites that are safe for them (and you).

Check out Nick kids games at www.nick.com. Nickelodeon does a great job providing age-appropriate games mostly for children 4 and up. They update the site with new games frequently, too.

Another is www.thomasandfriends.com. It has many activities for toddlers. You can also print out coloring pages for free. Another plus from this site is you can also access websites for the other HIT Entertainment shows like: Barney, Bob The Builder, and more.