School is Out For Summer

It's hard to believe that the school year is coming to a close.  I know it sounds cliche to say it seems just like yesterday we sent Tyler off on the bus for his first day of school, but it really does.  And to see him go off as this shy timid little boy and come back a much more confident big kid is amazing.  He has always been a smart kid but to see him now, I couldn't be more proud.  He had no idea what to expect that first day and you could see it in his face, almost frightened to meet a bunch of new kids, and somewhat scared as to what awaited him when he got off the bus at school.  I was nervous for him, things like this can be a big adjustment.

Tyler on his first day of school

He came back from that first day of school, and you know what, he actually wanted to go back the second day, and the third, and everyday since!  He has met a bunch of great kids in the process and has learned so much.  The smartest kid in the world, just got smarter!  On top of all  that you could see the confidence growing in him everyday. In nine short months, my boy has grown seemingly nine years older.  He has one more week of school before he officially becomes a second grader.  My kid, a second grader? Wasn't he just born?

Tyler with five days of school left

For those of you that have visited this site before you will notice that it has undergone a design change.  This is just the beginning of some changes I hope to implement as I continue to get more comfortable with HTML and all that you can accomplish by manipulating it.  I have decided to remove all ads from the site as really it was only making me pennies a day if I was lucky, and it really looked like a cluttered mess.  Maybe someday we can get ads back on here when all the Fortune 500 companies discover me, but in the meantime I think it looks a whole lot cleaner.  Please take the time to let me know what you think by commenting below and don't forget to check out the video in the upper right hand corner as to why daddy is in charge.  Thank you so much for reading, it really means a lot to me!

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Father's Day

I have never been a big fan of Father's Day.  I am not one to take praise or seek it in anyway.  I just like to go on doing my job knowing that my boys are getting the best life possible.  If Father's Day was like the other 364 days in the year, that would be fine by me.  I really don't want anyone to fuss over me and the best present that anyone could give me is a simple "Thank You."  That being said, I would think that my father is the same way, so to him I say:

Thank You

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Hero of the Week... Jose Morales

To familiarize you with this concept, I am honoring someone that has come in contact with my kids in a positive way. Not all heroes are fighting in wars or rescuing people from burning buildings. They can be everyday folks that go about their jobs to ensure that our lives are a little more fulfilled. Heroes big and small, we thank you!

This weeks "Hero of the Week" is Tyler's soccer coach Jose Morales.

Coach Jose Morales encouraging Team Spain

Like all the other coaches in our league Coach Morales is a volunteer. They give up their own time to make sure that kids are taught the proper fundamentals and have fun doing it. What a lot of people didn't know is that Coach Morales took time off from work to make this happen. Evening practices meant he had to take his own vacation time to make sure that the kids would have the proper coaching.

Throughout the course of the season I could see the frustration building as Tyler's team was the worst in the league. That did not dampen Coach Morales' enthusiasm for the game though as he was cheering them on even as there was not much to cheer about. I know the sacrifices made to be a coach, as I attempted to coach my other son and a bunch of other four year olds. It's not an easy job and one that Coach Morales deserves a lot of credit for. Thank you Coach for taking the time to teach my son a thing or two about soccer, you are this weeks "Hero of the Week."

They didn't win a game but Team Spain played hard

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Snakes Alive! Starring Legos

I don't like snakes, never have, never will.  There is just something about them not having arms or legs but they can still move super fast across my lawn.  I have never touched one but I can imagine that they feel really weird.  It's not something I will be doing anytime soon.  My kids know I hate snakes and they make fun of me because of it.  So be it, those slithery little beast can stay away from me.  So what do you do when you find a snake in your yard?  You call for help.

I really hope we get rid of this guy.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Daddy's in Charge Foolproof Recipe

Let's face it unless you have a menu planned, and what dad does, dinner jumps up on you everynight. I can't tell you how many times I look at the clock and have no idea how it got to be so late. This is a foolproof recipe that works everytime, although I would not use it all of the time, just as a last resort, when there is nothing else in your house, which seems to be way too often in mine.



Yes we are talking about boxed Macaroni and Cheese. In my case I bought mine at Wegmans, which by the way is the worlds greatest grocery store, but you can probably find in at any store. There is a brand name Kraft you might have heard of. Make sure you have the People magazine on hand as there is a lot of down time with this.



The first step is to boil water. You will know you have accomplished this task by seeing the water start to bubble when that happens you mist add the macaroni.



Normally I would not let my son do this part because we are talking about an open flame on the stove and I don't want him to get burned, but for the sake of the blog I wanted to show a cute child. I was told that puppies and babies sell, but it would be kind of weird to see a dog pour macaroni into water, so in this case a child will suffice.



Boil your macaroni for eight minutes. This is crucial as experiments have shown me that the macaroni will have the absolute right tenderness in this amount of time. Also it affords you the opportunity to read about how Ashley was hurt to hear some of the things that her prospective husbands had to say on the Bachelor.  Poor girl, I was sick watching it.

When the pasta is done you must drain all the water out of the pot. Then you are going to add about eight pounds of butter and a little bit of milk. I tend to find that it tastes exponentially better with each pat of butter added, but obviously this can be done to your taste.



The most crucial ingredient is the last one, it's what gives this meal it's name. We are of course talking about the cheese. Otherwise we have a dish of pasta with butter, another classic dish the kids will love.



Once this is all mixed together make sure that you spoon equal amounts into each bowl you are serving. Kids will somehow know that they got less in their bowl than the other one. Now you can sit back and watch the kids eat while you enjoy the rest of your People Magazine.

Suggested Pairings:
I would offer this with a nice cold glass of 1% milk or some sort of juice like apple

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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My Wife is a Bag Lady

I love my wife, I really do.  But there are some things that just drive me crazy.  When you have been together for 15 years it's bound to be the case.  She has some habits that I don't like, none more so than her addiction to bags.  She is not unlike a lot of women I am sure who collect bags like they are going out of style.  The difference though is that while some women have a bunch of Gucci or Coach bags, my wife has a huge collection of gym bags, plastic bags, and reusable shopping bags.  They are all over my house, each filled with a little bit of something.  Everyday she comes home with a new bag, and everyday it drives me a little more nuts.

An AOL bag doubling as a briefcase

A gym bag with some dirty laundry

A reusable shopping bag filled with shoes

A Macy's bag filled with MORE shoes

A ziplock bag with hair rollers

Another ziplock bag filled with hair and skin products

Another gym bag with smelly gym clothes

Thankfully this ISN'T a collection of Gucci or Coach bags as that would be a very expensive addiction.  I just have to remind myself of that.  There is one bag in our house that I hope she doesn't find.  If she did, she just might have a heart attack at the thought of what she could do with it.

Of course a bag full of bags that I HOPE she doesn't use

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Hero of the Week... My Mom

I am going to try a new concept here at Daddy's in Charge and offer you a weekly look at someone I consider to be a hero of the week.  Now heroes exist in many forms; firefighters, police officers, soldiers, and also everyday people who we come across that make our lives easier.  If you have a kid, I am assuming that you do if you read my blog, you might have might have heard of the TV show "Higglytown Heroes".  It was one of my sons favorite shows a few years ago, and every now and then the theme song pops in my head.   Sometimes I catch myself making up some stupid song about the cashier at the local Kohls.  In fact I still call my sons swim teacher Fran the Squirrel.  Anyway, you get the idea, there will be someone during the week that I come across who has affected us in a positive way.

This weeks hero is my mother Bonnie.  Now we didn't get to see her this week, so right off the bat I am changing my own rules, but for a very good reason, today is her BIRTHDAY.  I won't mention how old she is but you probably wouldn't believe me if I did.  My boys don't get to see her that much unfortunately, as she lives about six hours away, but I can tell you that doesn't change their love for her.

On the beach in Florida with Tyler

In Geneseo last Memorial Day

Happy Birthday Mom!  For being the BEST Grandmother in the world, I offer you this week's "Hero of the Week"

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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A Day Dream Starring Legos

Being a stay at home dad can be a very tiring job.  I find myself dozing off at all hours.  With the boys constantly on the move it's hard to keep up sometimes and I find myself needing to sit down.  When I do sit down, THAT'S when I find myself falling asleep.  Sometimes the day dreams that I have can be pretty ridiculous.  In fact just the other day I had the most vivid dream imaginable.

Clearly I have been playing with the boys TOO much.  It's time for adult interaction.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Grape Ape

There are many things at an amusement park that can leave you scratching your head, none more so than the prizes people win playing those stupid games at the midway. You know the ones like ring toss, knock the bottles down, or everyones favorite, fill the clowns nose with water.  It's like your taking a huge hose full of Nasanex and blasting out the clowns sinuses.  I am sure he really appreciates it.  And what do you win if you fill the clowns brain with water?  Well to start you could win the MEDIUM prize which of course is some stupid little stuffed animal worth usually about 25 cents, this is a great deal considering you spent $5.00 in the first place to play the game.  Now in order to win the large prize you have to win AGAIN, and the Jumbo, yet again, but do you really want to, lets take look.

You can barely see the people behind it

Nothing says you are a winner more than having a giant purple ape.  I have no idea what you would do with one of these and I am sure that  at the time it was thought of as a good idea to win this prize, but as you are driving on the Turnpike with this thing in the back of your pickup, it has to go through your mind what a giant ASS you must feel like.  I don't even know if something like this would fit through the door of your house.  The dump has to be littered with these things.

woo, WOOF

If a giant purple ape is not your thing then maybe an oversized dog could do the trick.  I guess this thing would make more sense, but still WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?  It must cost you upwards of $50 to win this stupid prize, unless you just happen to be the greatest softball thrower in the world.  Maybe you could park this in front of your house to guard against thieves.  Certainly if they are not scared off by thought of an enormous guard dog, they will soon realize that your house has nothing of real value.

Who is up for some calamari

So you have crossed those two off the list and what are you stuck with, you have a choice between a jalpeno pepper with a chefs hat on, or this squid.  Well obviously a pepper with a hat makes no sense so you have to take a squid, its a no brainer, as in if you try to win something like this YOU HAVE NO BRAIN.  I once spent $50 dollars at ring toss at a carnival trying to win my kid the grand prize.  When a friend actually hit the grand prize we were told that we needed to actually hit something else, so we stole a bucket full of rings and walked away.  They were probably worth more than the Zebra I was trying to win in the first place.

Shh

Any trip to the amusement park would be incomplete if you didn't find your in-laws sleeping on some bench in the middle of the park.  Sometimes I am tempted to put a little cup in front of them just to see how much money they could make.  After all we could use the money to walk out of there with something totally awesome like a Rastabanana.

One love, One life... lets get together and feel alright

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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I am a Garbage Man

Somewhere along the way, on top of everything else, I became a garbage man. Now I don't drive a truck and I have never been to the dump but everyday my pockets are full of junk. It's like I am a chipmunk shoving nuts in my mouth, that sounds pretty bad I know, but in this case I am just filling my pockets with garbage.


These shorts used to be great when the kids were little and I could throw in binkies, diapers, wipes, and whatever else I needed. I didn't carry around a big diaper bag, I would just throw everything in my cargo shorts. I used to have like three or four binkies and whenever one got dirty out came another one clean as my mouth would allow it.


I have no need for all that diaper changing stuff anymore, so my pockets are now filled mostly with candy wrappers and straws from the various juice boxes my kids suck down. Try digging into your pockets at the 7/11 looking for money, I pull out everything but. Unfortunately they don't accept Reese's Pieces wrappers as currency, who knew?


If it's not the wrappers it the receipts that prove I paid for the candy in the first place. I might as well have one pocket for garbage and the other for recycling although I don't know if I would be able to separate my plastics and my bottles.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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A Hot Day Starring Legos

We all know the effects of the heat on us, but what about Lego minifigures?  When the temperature rises it can be life threatening in their world.

The Movie

Disclaimer: no legos were harmed in the filming of this video

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Tickle me Elmo

I tickle when I get mad. Not with everyone, just my kids. I think that would be weird if I got pulled over by a cop and I got out of the car and started to tickle him. It probably would cause a few more problems than what I was already facing in the first place.

Carter midtickle

The way I figure, I can take out some of my frustration and change the behavior at the same time. Maybe it's a little illogical but it works for me. I know my kids weaknesses, and can take them down with only one finger. That's a pretty powerful ability, one that not even a lot of superheroes can master.

Sometimes as a parent you can just get so frustrated you really have no option. I can honestly see why people hit their kids, I don't condone that in any way but I can certainly see why they would. I can't tell you how many times I have wanted throw my kids out a window or up against a wall, I think we all have at times. In the end though I remind myself that these are kids and I was just as annoying if not more than they were when I was their age. I am sure that I should have been smacked around a few times, if not then, definitely now.

Lets just say he gets tickled a lot

So what am I left with? I tickle. I am ticklish myself and I can't stand it. I know the feeling of being tickled is on an equal level of some of the most severe torture techniques that the CIA can come up with. I don't tickle long, just enough in just the right places, or wrong places I guess until they stop or I feel better. It might not be the best way to get the kids in line and I am sure that people would take issue with it, but I have yet to see anyone rally to stop parents from tickling their kids, and I don't think that DYFS is heading to my house anytime soon.

As for Elmo himself, I don't think anyone would have an issue with me if I happened to punch HIM in the nose? Would you?

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Memorial Day

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Don't Lose Sight

A couple of songs for you as we enjoy our Memorial Day weekends.
 Take sometime this weekend to remember what it stands for. Try to honor those that have given the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms. It's more than just hot dogs and hamburgers, its about brave men and women who died protecting us and our way of life.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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Don't Wake a Sleeping Giant

Don't let the peacefulness of this little boy fool you...

...If you wake him up, he will probably punch you in the nose.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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