This is the third post in a four-part series on our ultimate go-to spot for an L.A. play date. Check out our first post on why these dads came to LA and our second post on kid-friendly places to eat. And come back next week for the next in the series on the author's most "L.A." parenting experience. Where is your ultimate go-to spot for am L.A. play date (weekday or weekend)? My go to spot for a play date is the Japanese Garden in Van Nuys. There is so much to see there, and yet you think you’re no longer in LA! There is also an adjacent park area to picnic and allow the children to … [Read more...]
Parents Love LA! Blog Series Part 2 (Favorite Place to Eat)
This is the second post in a four-part series on why parents love living in LA. Check out last week's post and come back next week for the next in the series on the ultimate go-to spot for play dates. Where is your favorite kid-friendly place to eat (on any budget)? I’ve always felt that kid-friendly was a matter of opinion (unless the establishment has a rule against kids, then screw ‘em). We enjoy a variety of places, but we’re suckers for stuff like Golden Road Brewery where the food is good, there is root beer on tap and the kids can play ping-pong or watch some soccer. We’re also … [Read more...]
Parents Love LA! The LA Dads Group Series
We have been having a hard time coming up with ideas for new blog posts (send them to us, please!) so we reached out to a few dads and bloggers in the LA area and asked them a few questions about their LA experience. We are going to share their responses in four-part series on everything from their favorite kid-friendly spot for play dates to their most memorable LA parenting experience. So strap in and enjoy the ride on this journey that we call "Parents Love LA!" Question #1: Why did you come to LA (or if you are from here, what has kept you here)? We moved to the area for two reasons, … [Read more...]
LA Dads, Plum Organics Help Families in Need in Los Angeles
You know you’ve met a super dad who really cares about his community when he shows up on a Tuesday morning, without kids, to volunteer for two hours. Those were the dads who came out on Giving Tuesday to pack food and clothing to deliver to families struggling with the basic necessities. Plum Organics, the nation’s leading organic baby food brand, delivered a pallets of food — most weighing over 400 pounds, to various cities around the country with chapters of City Dads Group. Here in Los Angeles, the Plum Organic products were delivered to the GOOD+ Foundation, a nonprofit group … [Read more...]
Talking is Teaching: Talk, Read, Sing and Our Day at the Dodger Game
“F — O — X…what does that spell?” asked my daughter as she looked out the window at signs along the freeway on the way to the Dodgers game.
My daughter’s interest in reading came from parents. My wife and I have been talking, reading, and singing to our three kids practically since the day we learned we were pregnant. We found a Dr. Seuss book to read while “in utero” and it became a nightly ritual. When our youngest was born, he turned towards … [Read more...]
Check out the photos from our awesome LA Dads Group ‘Art Crawl’ sponsored by WaterWipes
Disclosure: We proudly partnered with WaterWipes for this event and post. Have you ever wanted to do a big art project with your kids at home, but dreaded cleaning up the table, walls, kids, brushes, and pets afterward? It can be stressful just thinking about it! Thanks to WaterWipes, an Ireland-based company founded by a concerned parent seeking a better baby wipe, we had the perfect opportunity get super dirty at the Zimmer Children's Museum “Art Crawl” without needing to worry about the cleanup! The Zimmer Children's Museum is an interactive museum that allows children and parents … [Read more...]
Missing the Moment: Dad Lessons in Camera Operation (Video)
Has your kid done something extraordinary (like, all the time!) and you whip out your phone or camera, only to miss it by a few seconds? Well, it happens to us all the time! This time, however, we actually caught one of our L.A. Dads Group co-organizers Juan Pablo on camera trying to film his son's first attempt at surfing. We won't give away the hilarious story...but the moral of the story might just be that we should all just "be in the moment" with our kids a little bit more often, rather than watching our kids through our phone or our camera. Whatever you do, first enjoy our short film … [Read more...]
L.A. Dads featured in TODAY Parents video for Father’s Day
A couple of our local dads were featured in a video on dads by TODAY Parents for Father's Day. Thanks to Doyin Richards for putting all the pieces today. We strive to raise our children to the best of our abilities, no matter what others may say. And we had such a great time playing in the park and working on the video. We hope you enjoy and share it! https://www.facebook.com/todayparents/videos/10154763966377984/ … [Read more...]
Marching for science (and our kids)
Earth Day was April 22nd, and as an environmentalist and son of a scientist, our family fully embraced the day of marches in support of science. Our first step in celebrating Mother Earth was to pick up an all-electric vanpool car, a Tesla X, from Green Commuter. I found out about this amazing company when they launched last year and came to Los Angeles. They rent out the Tesla X, the all-electric SUV version of the popular Tesla car, to riders by the hour, day, or weekend. This is great for two reasons: 1) our family of four (about to be five) only has one car and sometimes (especially on … [Read more...]
Getting the Kids Out of the City (or getting the “city” out of “City Dads”)
We all feel the stress of life as a modern-day parent. School. Work. Traffic. Bills. Politics. Scheduling kids’ activities. Shuttling kids to those activities. More traffic. Sometimes it feels like we are on a wheel that never stops. To decompress, our family a few times a year tries to visit relatives who live on a 15-acre farm in Sonoma County -- about an hour north of San Francisco and just west of Napa Valley. It is a beautiful vineyard with views of the valley below. Every morning roosters and geese wake you as they go out in search of food and water. The daylight has a soft glow … [Read more...]