A Mountain of fun at Smugglers’ Notch.
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
1w ago
Through most of my time as a teenager growing up in the Northeast, we had school-sponsored ski trips to our local mountain in Pennsylvania. I always felt like an imposter because I had to rent gear, while most of my friends were more avid snow sport enthusiasts. My best friend always had a new set of K2’s and the others had neon Rossignol’s. And then there was me, out there dominating – with flannel Long John’s under my Wranglers, and a beanie that we snagged from K-mart. The ‘real ones’ would stand around in their ski huddles, saying words like ‘Killington’ and ‘Stowe’ and ‘Smugglers’ Notch ..read more
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Some Simply Good Air
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
4M ago
If you’ve followed our family for any length of time, you likely know we’ve been met by a number of health battles through the years. One of the absolutely toughest has been watching our daughter, Ava, in her fight with Lupus. In 2019, Ava was diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, an auto-immune disease that would forever change her life, as well as ours. In an ironic twist of fate, she was also simultaneously diagnosed with Latent Tuberculosis. Yep, TB… there was no one more surprised than my wife and I when those words came out of her doctor’s mouth. The scary part was that the high ..read more
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Finding a Different Way to do Father’s Day.
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
Each year, a few weeks before Father’s Day, I begin to notice my wife and kids shadowing me around the house.  They pay exceedingly close attention to every little chore or job that I’m doing – all in an effort to catch me say something out loud, like ‘Dang it, these earbuds don’t work’ or ‘I can’t believe I spilled oil on my favorite t-shirt AGAIN’. This always serves as an opportunity for them to pounce and head out to the store to replace whatever I’ve got that’s broken… Shopping for me (and Dads in general) tends to get harder and harder each year; I’ve personally spent a lot of time ..read more
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Why Aren’t You Investing in Your Kids?
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
Trust me, the more I thought about it, I wish that I could have offered a relatively simple answer to that question, but it’s just not that easy sometimes. Like most parents, we spend 18 years of our lives investing in our kids mental and emotional and physical well-being… but someone asked me recently why investing in my kids’ financial future wasn’t included way back when. I suppose it’s because my wife and I were just starting to secure our own financial future… so helping them learn to invest was at the bottom of the list and felt like a long ways off. In fact, it felt like just yesterda ..read more
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A year to celebrate? The good, the bad and the ugly.
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
I know it’s been a long time since you’ve heard from me here. I’ve probably only posted twice over the last year and while I regret that – sometimes people need to pull back, regroup and evolve. And for those loyal followers (old and new) that thought I had forgotten about the blog and brand that I started over a decade ago – tough shit – I just renewed my trademark and plan to get you caught up on all the juice over the next few weeks. Writing about your life and putting yourself on display begins to wear you down after ten years. Plus, my kids are coming to an age where I need to be more con ..read more
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The Hidden Gem of Eastern Tennessee
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
EDITOR’S NOTE: Regarding the Pigeon Forge attractions & businesses mentioned in this blog, please check their respective websites for an update on their COVID-19 operational updates. For those of you who aren’t familiar, Pigeon Forge is a mountain town and vacation area in Eastern Tennessee. It sits nestled along the foothills of The Great Smokies, not far from Gatlinburg. Many people will recognize it as the home to Dollywood, country singer Dolly Parton’s Appalachian-themed park consisting of rides, a water park and much more. For more information on Pigeon Forge, visit their official we ..read more
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How We’re Making Tech Work for Our Family in 2020
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
2019 marks my tenth year as a parent. But even though it’s been a decade, I still have so much to learn. For example, if we’re being brutally honest, up until a few months ago I didn’t even realize that I had a ‘tween’ living under my roof. It felt as if the ‘shift’ happened overnight – physical and attitudinal changes, along with some behavioral sass and expanded interest in privacy were a few quick clues that led me to Google. I’m not talking about Google in the sense of my current partnership with them (stealth disclaimer), but rather the fact that I had to use the search engine to figure ..read more
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Attempting a Guinness World Records Title is a Snap?
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
It’s only been about two weeks since our hardbound cover copy of the Guinness World Records 2020 book arrived in the mail here at home. If you’ll remember from earlier this month, reading this book with my kids has become somewhat of a tradition. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t holed up in the bathroom (*my only solitude) reading through the headlines. Beginning at our in-laws’ house in Georgia over the Christmas holiday a solid decade ago, we’ve now introduced the first of a long series of collectible keepers that will sit on the shelf in my office. Ten years ago, my kids weren’t old enough ..read more
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WHICH GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ TITLE CAN YOU BREAK?
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
After having 4 kids in my 10+ years of raising children, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve handled a parenting situation and immediately afterwards, turned to my wife and said ‘I think we just set the record’. Sure, keeping track of the amount of baby blow-outs that escape the diaper and ruin a onesie OR times that one child hurled into an emesis bag in the middle of the night on a roadtrip in a snowstorm are certainly noteworthy in parenting circles. However, was it enough or too little to qualify for the Guinness World Records 2020? Thanksgiving is the official kick-off of the holidays f ..read more
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It’s Cool to be Kind.
Dad or Alive
by Adrian
3y ago
October is almost over, but it has been one of the most important, and possibly even defining, for my wife and I as parents. This month is National Bullying Prevention Month and in this day and age, taking the time to acknowledge it is more important than ever. It used to be that bullying was primarily a face-to-face thing. When I was growing up, bullies perfected their craft on the playground, school bus or any location in which parents or administrators weren’t flourishing. I remember watching some of my friends get bullied – getting gum smashed in their hair with an atomic wedgie for good m ..read more
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