An inventive dad from the UK is using an FV106 Samson tank as the family car. Father-of-three Gary Freeland purchased the armoured recovery and reconnaissance vehicle for £20,000. Ever since, the light track FV106 has been the family’s favourite errand runabout. He told The Sun, “The tank is the best way to get the kids to go somewhere. They can’t wait to help me with the shopping when they know I ...

Editor’s Note: This story is so lovely, we can’t help but run it again. Feel free to send in your own stories of those early days! ~~~ It’s hard to believe so much time has passed. My son, Seth, is now ten weeks old, and so intelligent he’s bound to make a future Prime Minister. (Not that I’m biased!) Recently, I reflected on my experiences during Seth’s birth. A heap has ...

Our culture pressures us to keep working and consuming. It takes a conscious effort to step back, take a breather and re-prioritise, but doing so is really worth it for good health and peace of mind. “We have more ‘things per person’ than any other nation in history. Closets are full, storage space is used up, and cars can’t fit into garages, having first imprisoned us with debt. Possessions then take ...

We have all no doubt heard the statistics regarding separation and divorce in this country — something like 30% of marriages end in divorce, and a huge number of Australian children are forced to cope with life after marital breakdown. The typical divorce scenario in Australia today is that mum gets custody of the children and dad (hopefully) gets access and an obligation to pay Child Support. Children from broken marriages ...

Have you ever experienced the situation when someone has apologised but, while the words were said it lacked something, making it difficult for you to accept it? Sadly, most of us are not as good at apologising as we need to be. We think that it’s obvious, should just be instinctual, or that our love should somehow make it magically work. Well, it isn’t obvious, and it is not instinctual. We ...

Deciding to home-school can feel like a massive undertaking, but it is worth it. Here are some gems from a father’s firsthand experience. As the primary educators of their children, stable parents are best-placed to form their offspring, and have access to many resources today. Merriam-Webster’s base definition for homeschooling is “to teach one’s child at home.” Whether you’re a parent who is new to homeschooling or you’re a parent against ...

It’s one of the most powerful movie moments in history — in my opinion. Not because of special effects, cinematography, eloquent scripting or romantic fervour. It happened deep within the ruins of the World Trade Centre, during the 2006 Olive Stone movie of the same name. Sergeant John McLoughlin is trapped, losing all hope of rescue, when he has a vision of his wife. I can’t find it anywhere on YouTube, ...

As fathers, we will leave a legacy for our children, whether good or ill. Start working on your legacy today, that your children may have a brighter tomorrow. I can remember, as if it were yesterday, the last day I spent with my Dad. We had an enjoyable day together meeting with business leaders in the Sydney CBD. Three days later, the police knocked on my door to notify me of ...

It was 12:00am on Sunday, the 1st of September — Father’s Day, to be precise. There I was, frantically gathering clothes and bits ‘n’ pieces according to my wife’s somewhat disjointed instruction.  She was roaming about the house with a hot wheat sack across her rather overgrown abdomen. I couldn’t believe it. Had the moment finally arrived? After nine — closer to ten long months, was I finally going to be ...

Editorial Note: Songs capture moments and sometimes the moments live on. ‘Love is a Battlefield’ is such a song from the eighties that people still sing today and for good reason. The truth hurts and the truth heals. Listen if you dare. ~~~ We are young, heartache to heartache we stand No promises, no demands Love is a battlefield We are strong, no one can tell us we’re wrong Searchin’ our ...

As someone who has been through the very difficult travails of divorce and undertaken various versions of shared care over the past 15 years, I understand all too well the confusion, stress and sadness these difficult travails bring with them. I have, however, learned a few things along the way that I hope might be of benefit to those fellow travellers who are about to, or are, experiencing similar life experiences. ...

Homeschooled children can enjoy a more holistic, grounded and in-depth education than their peers in school. Here are several factors behind their lifelong success. Look across a spectrum of homeschooling success stories, and you’ll come across the words freedom and flexibility. Homeschooled children tend to be more successful in life because home education is elastic. This scholastic elasticity makes homeschooling a parental powerhouse packed with potential. In practice, homeschool curricula and ...

Whether it fizzes, gives you wings or opens happiness — the truth is, it’s packed with sugar and it could be causing serious health problems in children. Figures show 1 in 6 Queensland kids are drinking at least one sugar-sweetened beverage daily. That’s not limited to soft drink either — it includes energy drinks, fruit drinks, cordial and sports drinks too. The 2012 Queensland Chief Health Officer’s Report revealed 16 per ...

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” These are the inspirational words of Bilbo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings, written by J.R.R. Tolkien. The fact that Tolkien was one of the biggest-selling adventure authors of all time with 150 million copies sold gives extra credence ...

Why does it seem so hard sometimes to have peace in the house? I have struggled many times over this. We pray every day, try to organise the day and set the course — that is, we the parents. As a father, the head of the household, I should be steering the ship on the course I think we are going — why do we hit so many rocks? We used ...

My life as a dad is whatever you get when you tumble excitement and pride and joy and sweet-sadness and wholeheartedness together. The heady mix of emotion had me blurt out an “I love you” to my girls on their mum’s voicemail and spontaneously add: “I am just so proud to be your dad!” My thoughts turn often to my earthly angels when they are not in my care. While there ...

One of the greatest challenges couples face in our contemporary age is the presumption of sexual excitement. When the romance wanes, marriages are at risk — but what’s a couple to do when passion is in decline? We’re all in favour of a vibrant and passionate sex life for couples — however, it’s not always easy to sustain the passion when domestic responsibilities make spontaneity and novelty an endangered species. Early ...

It’s the middle of Winter. It’s cold. The TV is jampacked full of all your favourite shows. It’s cold. The aroma of lasagne or hot chocolate wafts through the house. Did I mention it’s cold? This is when you have to make a choice: dressing gown and comfort food… or workout. It’s especially hard tonight because every other member of Fit Club has pulled out. Getting motivated to exercise alone is ...

Believe it or not, any victory for mothers is also a victory for fathers, and ultimately for children. Sall Dover, a new young mother, after protesting on Twitter about the forced use of the Orwellian phrase “birthing parent”, has scored a victory for motherhood. It takes a man and a woman to create a child, and a mother and a father to raise a child. All the social science research shows ...

Keeping the flame of love alive in your marriage through the years, is the best gift you can give your children — a daily example of how to cherish their mother, no matter what life brings. “It will never happen to me”; “No way — too much fun to have”; “Hey boys, did you hear about Johnno getting hitched? (cue gasps of shock and unbelief)… he’s mad.” Who can remember as ...