The Real Dad Podcast
Each week, these four fathers cover a wide range of "Dad" related topics, from the joys of watching your child grow up to the challenges of balancing work and family life. With their unique blend of humor and authenticity, Dave, Joey, Brian, and Mark provide a refreshing perspective on what it means to be a dad in today's world.
Tune in for the laughs, stay for the heartfelt conversations about the struggles and triumphs of parenting. Whether you're a seasoned dad or a soon-to-be father, "The Real Dad Podcast" is the perfect place to connect with other dads and get the support you need.
Join us on this journey of fatherhood, and subscribe to "The Real Dad Podcast" today!
The Real Dad Podcast
From Tantrums to Triumph: A Parent's Journey Through Resistance
Beating your kids at sports might just be one of the most satisfying feelings in parenting. From swatting away basketball shots to dominating at board games, our hosts share those sweet moments of victory that won't last forever—so enjoy them while you can!
This episode takes a deep dive into the daily struggles parents face, particularly when children resist activities we know are good for them. Dave recounts his epic battle getting his seven-year-old daughter back to swimming lessons after a break, sharing both the frustrations and the creative solutions (including fish tank bribery!) that finally got her back in the water. It's a perfect example of how modern parents navigate the balance between gentle encouragement and firm boundaries.
We explore the fascinating world of modern parenting challenges, from managing screen time for a gaming-obsessed 12-year-old to responding when your child declares "you're a bad parent" because you won't let them attend a birthday after-party. The hosts discuss those triggering moments when our children push our buttons, reflecting on how our own childhood experiences shape our parenting approaches today. As one dad notes, "I am the parent that I wanted my parents to be," highlighting the generational healing many of us attempt through our parenting.
The conversation turns to sports and family traditions, with dads sharing their hopes for connecting with their children through athletics. Whether it's watching playoff hockey together, teaching kids to play baseball, or celebrating when your three-year-old finally makes a basket on the trampoline hoop, these moments of connection matter deeply. Even when your child decides to cheer for your team's bitter rivals just to be contrary (as one host's son does), there's joy in sharing these experiences together.
Listen now for authentic, unfiltered conversations about fatherhood that will make you laugh, reflect, and feel less alone in your parenting journey. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review to join our community of real dads navigating the challenges and joys of raising the next generation!
There's nothing like beating kids at sports.
Speaker 2:I was just telling Joey earlier today about playing basketball with my son outside.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I told him I was like Ben one of the greatest feelings in life is blocking your son's shot. When you take a shot and you can just absolutely reject that shot and say get out of my house. It's the best feeling, it is the best feeling and I'm like one day you will call me and you'll be like dad.
Speaker 4:I get it now yeah, we gotta take our wins when we can get them and while we can, yes. Time to relax your mind.
Speaker 3:Come have breakfast with the Real Dad Podcast.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Real Dad Podcast. I'm Dave and my sister is due to have her second baby. Like any time now, that's very fair. We're in the coin toss zone where the baby could be coming soon. Pretty excited, yeah, excited for you. You're going to be an uncle again, good for you.
Speaker 1:I'm Joey. Although I am only 5'9", I used to be able to dunk a volleyball in high school On a basketball net.
Speaker 5:How do?
Speaker 1:you dunk a volleyball. Well, I couldn't palm a basketball because I have wee hands, but I could grab a volleyball, so then I could dunk it.
Speaker 5:He has ups. I had ups. You dunked on a basketball net or a volleyball net.
Speaker 1:I dunked on a basketball net using a volleyball because of size of hand.
Speaker 2:I see the miscommunication. My apologies. I should have clarified. Dunking on a volleyball net wouldn't have been as impressive.
Speaker 1:Maybe just not have said volleyball it's on me.
Speaker 5:Okay, my name is Mark. Hi Mark, and I remain surprisingly calm whilst getting puked on for two weeks straight. There you go. Yes, I'm only angry about it when I'm here.
Speaker 3:I didn't think that was a thing. There you go.
Speaker 4:My name is Brian and I once went on a date with a man at 360 in Toronto. Oh, boy, okay I think I've told that story before.
Speaker 3:No.
Speaker 4:But it's been a while.
Speaker 3:Nope, I don't think you have, I don't think you have either. Was it an?
Speaker 2:accidental date? Was it an on purpose date? We're just friends. Okay, was it?
Speaker 4:This guy was super rich apparently.
Speaker 3:Did you know it was a?
Speaker 4:date Not really. Can you tell the?
Speaker 3:story.
Speaker 1:I think, we're going to need more context. I think there's been movies about this. I think so too, an expose.
Speaker 5:Listener just to paint the picture about 38 seconds ago he said he did not have a fun fact.
Speaker 3:We beg to differ and we won.
Speaker 4:I do have a few weird stories in my life, that's fair.
Speaker 1:I bust them out every once in a while.
Speaker 4:This was like a guy I went to school with. We lived in the same house when I went to Ryerson. He was an interesting fella. He was apparently very rich. I don't know if I believe it or not. One time he paid off my credit card Without me knowing and then demanded I pay him back.
Speaker 1:Okay, shortly later, shortly after, when I pissed him off one time.
Speaker 4:Okay, so that happened how does that? Happen, I don't know man. Then he scolded me for being in so much debt. Yeah, uh. But yeah, he was, uh, he. We went to, went to a few different restaurants in the city. Went to this really fancy Japanese restaurant one time. It was really good. And then you realized you were dating him.
Speaker 3:We were just friends, man. Where did the date come into play?
Speaker 4:I don't know. You just say you want to go to this place for dinner.
Speaker 1:I'm like yeah, and that's it.
Speaker 3:All right, how many dates?
Speaker 5:have we been on?
Speaker 3:Not a lot of dates then.
Speaker 2:All right.
Speaker 5:Did he try to kiss you? But it was like a little slip. There was just some weird things that happened.
Speaker 1:Nothing sexual.
Speaker 3:I feel like there's some off-air stories we're going to get here no nothing sexual.
Speaker 4:Did he kiss you? No, did he rub your leg. It was mostly him scolding me for being like poor Interesting.
Speaker 2:So it was like a pretty woman type situation Okay okay, okay. You do resemble little Julia Roberts, though I can see this. No, I don't know.
Speaker 1:Never in my life, you just.
Speaker 4:You have some crazy stories that I'm just not sure are true.
Speaker 2:Yeah, fair enough. Okay, well, let's.
Speaker 3:We'll talk about it, but first let's dad, you know what's really fun.
Speaker 4:Playing Mario Odyssey with your kids.
Speaker 5:What is Mario?
Speaker 4:Odyssey. It's a Nintendo Switch game and it is just a blast.
Speaker 5:What is Nintendo Switch it's?
Speaker 2:the newest Nintendo system, but not new. It's been for quite a while. Are you living under a rock or something?
Speaker 5:I live in the country. It's a lot, lot of fun if you're thinking about getting a gaming system it's a great intro, that one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a great intro for kids okay we haven't entered our video game era with my kids yet, and I'm I'm looking forward to it. I'm scared of it a little bit because I get addicted to video games, so I don't know how that's gonna play out once they get there.
Speaker 5:So I was the kid that used to watch my friends and my brothers play video games. Yeah, and I liked it yeah I never so like now that it's a thing, and like people go to stadiums and stuff. I'd be like yo I could.
Speaker 4:I could vibe with that right, I could vibe with that yeah, it's a great way to connect. Uh, I just play with my oldest mostly. Uh, yeah, it's just fun, like the banter that you have playing video games that you don't have other times.
Speaker 5:I don't know, it was just fun I love that yeah, it's a great connection it's interesting because robin's bachelorette is this weekend, okay I've been looking for things to do okay I wonder if they'd be into, like me, switching it up.
Speaker 4:Yeah with a switch. Switch, let's see what you call it. Get the switch too. I don't know if you can get it.
Speaker 5:It's probably back-ordered the last video game console that you had was Madden 08. So if that's still a thing, it's not a console.
Speaker 2:It's just a game.
Speaker 1:What did you play it on?
Speaker 2:Like Xbox or PlayStation.
Speaker 1:The TV, the TV. Okay, all right.
Speaker 5:Mad madden 08 so you're talking like that's ps2 territory, I think. See, here's where it got sticky. The first one that I ever got was a playstation, yeah, but then we went into, like this, xbox era. So it was an xbox okay, okay, that I had and I literally only played like racing card games and football games. Need for Speed yes, great game. Yeah, super great game. And then I had a little PS. Remember their little like Game Boy situation?
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 5:Yep, what was it? Psp, yep, psp, that's what it was yeah, so I bought that when I went away to like on a trip somewhere, because you could like illegally download movies.
Speaker 4:And I put that on there and then I was jealous of those kids.
Speaker 5:Yeah, psbs yeah so sweet, but then the nintendo switch is very much like that.
Speaker 2:Oh, it's handheld. It's both. Yeah, it can be both. You can connect it to the tv or you can carry it with you. It's quite nice, this isn't sponsored by nintendo it is a great little entry it could
Speaker 2:be, nintendo, that's interesting because it's all those games are like. It has a lot of, uh, kid friendly games on it, so like even mario kart and stuff like you can enable it to help control the kid a little bit better even on it. So if they're younger they can still feel like they're playing along and it's like the arcade racing games yeah, yeah they keep you headed in the right direction, but it is. It is a little dangerous road like.
Speaker 2:My son is 12 now and he uh can put in some serious hours it always happens, it happens fast so because he's also at that age where we're allowing him to make some more choices for himself, because he can stay home on his own. He doesn't have to. So we left for church on sunday and he was like I don't want to go. And I was like to my wife I'm like do we want to have this fight now? Like do we want to force him to come or not? And she's like I don't really care if he comes or not. I'm like I kind of like giving him the ability now that he can't choose. She was like well then, what if the girls hear that he's not coming? Then they're like we don't want to come. It's like no, it's an age thing, yeah, he's 12. He's allowed to stay on his own. He's done the babysitter course, but he has a certificate for it.
Speaker 3:And he's allowed to, so we allowed him to have that choice, right.
Speaker 2:So he probably had woke up at seven maybe, and had started gaming, right.
Speaker 5:In the morning, yeah morning.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we, what are we responsible all the time? Really, I don't know if it's responsible.
Speaker 3:It's waking up to play video games before anybody else can wake up I respect that commitment to a cause.
Speaker 5:I respect that. Listen, I like I'm all about that.
Speaker 4:You want to wake up early to rot your brain and do your shit, as long as you're ready for school on time yeah, I don't even care if you're ready for school on time.
Speaker 5:That's no. Yeah, there's no.
Speaker 2:There's no gaming on school days oh because he would turn into an absolute monster if he was gaming and you had to try and get him to go to school. Okay, okay, so on weekends, though he'll do that gotcha yeah he came home from church and he was in the same spot on the couch and unmoved thousand percent. That's where I did say that he got himself lunch. So I was like, okay, good, at least you fed yourself.
Speaker 2:That's important or so and he just he gamed hard all day pretty much because my wife and I went, my wife and I went out for a little date, so he was watching. The girls came back from that date still on the same spot he crushed a full day of gaming. Call me crazy, you're man.
Speaker 5:So what if you like, put in that little astroturf? You can stay home, but all the laundry has to be put away.
Speaker 4:Right.
Speaker 1:But, you know what I'm saying?
Speaker 5:You're giving him responsibility, but then also well, not a chore.
Speaker 1:It's like a half hour thing, but it's like something you don't want to do.
Speaker 4:You got to knock something off my list. Do you know what I'm saying?
Speaker 5:you gotta knock something off my list. Do you know what I'm saying?
Speaker 3:and it takes a plate off you and like hey, yo I'll give it to you, but it's gonna cost you, yeah, I like that I like that, I feel like you get into that take.
Speaker 1:It's a hard negotiation.
Speaker 2:I don't think it's gonna get done. You don't think so?
Speaker 5:like that's because that's my kids are like well then you gotta have a consequence if it doesn't happen, I'd love consequences are you kidding me?
Speaker 3:I throw consequences like it's my job With a teenager. But I've never that's why I'm asking Do you think it would be?
Speaker 2:received Probably not.
Speaker 3:What if I told him to do it?
Speaker 2:He gets it for I don't know, I don't know he's heard to kid demotivate sometimes We'll see how things go down.
Speaker 1:We talked about this recently. That Dave's the pushover here.
Speaker 3:Talk to Joy Wanted to take a second here okay uh, just to talk about my youngest daughter abby and how fuck her.
Speaker 1:Oh wow, that took a turn. I thought this is well. We can talk about the pope, we can talk about, we can turn this around.
Speaker 2:We can turn this around. This is we can start. God bless you. I wanted to say at home, but I wasn't allowed to say because she was there.
Speaker 4:You can bring it here. This is a safe place. Hold on, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
Speaker 3:Before you say the internet is forever, dave, write it down, wait three days before you push, send Marks your parachute right now.
Speaker 5:Wait, wait, wait. How old's your daughter?
Speaker 2:Let's not go there. Anyways, seven years old, oh my god so if you recall, you probably got to go back maybe five, six episodes when I leave a review while you're there we had an amazing parenting win getting her to go to swimming.
Speaker 1:Yeah, do you recall?
Speaker 3:that we talked about a book that helped us calm down anxiety and stuff.
Speaker 2:Since then she has not been back to swimming lessons, okay, we had the easter break and then it was like too long of a break between it that she was like I don't want to go anymore, I'm scared, I don't. And she was just like would melt down every time. All right, so we tried and then it was like no go. My wife had got her there and she was dressed in the change room and then she had a meltdown there and my wife was like tried her best and she was like I'm done, I can't do it. Brought her home the next week. It was like nope, well now.
Speaker 2:She didn't want to go and we're like it was one of those days where it's like, do you have a fight, do you have this fight in you? And she's like, no, I'm like, I don't have this fight in me today, we're not doing it. Today was like we led up to it over the weekend. We talked to her about it. She really wants a pet. My wife does not want pets in our house, she's so over pets. She settled on a fish where it was like, okay, a fish tank. If you do the swimming Fishing sucks you gotta. You gotta clean the tank. You can get some things to clean it and stuff, but anyways, you anyway the laziest pet owner of all time.
Speaker 5:No, you have to clean that that's a responsibility.
Speaker 4:It's basically the fish just dies eventually exactly.
Speaker 2:But we settled to that and it was like, okay, if you've got six more swimming lessons, if you go to these six swimming lessons, the first one will get a tank, the second one, you get the gravel for it.
Speaker 5:The third one you get a slowly building it. Can I get all this stuff when this fish dies?
Speaker 2:yeah, we'll rotate, houses I love that she was so excited I was taking a dump and she comes running in dad, if I do my swimming lessons I get a fish. And we're like great kid comes home for school ready for swimming lessons. Nope, crying hard. No, mom, I hate mom mom's the worst. Why? Because you said if I don't go to swimming then I don't get a fish. Oh, my god. So then I came home. I've had a great day today. I had all the patients in the world. I did all the things we've talked about, got down to her level. I held her, didn't say anything, just let her do her thing did you read?
Speaker 2:her the book your training, no what I ended up doing was playing her our podcast episode of me talking about how proud I was of her I said babe, after your first swimming lesson I went to my friends for the podcast, gaslighting and I told her how proud I was of you.
Speaker 3:You're a fucking boomer parent man, you did amazing. You're just manipulating her.
Speaker 1:This poor little girl. Yes, I'm trying, you're right, he was attempting to manipulate her.
Speaker 2:I have no idea how deep we are in this hole. I do, actually.
Speaker 1:I have a very good idea.
Speaker 2:If you look to your left.
Speaker 1:Mark is in the hole as well.
Speaker 2:So, anyways, we end up getting her dressed. We're late now we end up getting her dressed. We're late now we get there. She's like well, okay, mom and dad, can we both go? We are just catering to every one of her needs to get her there. Get her there, then the swimming lesson's practically over. She still didn't want to go in. The teacher came over and was like everything okay. She's like well, how about I just do one more swim and back with the other kids and then we'll do jumps into the 10 minutes, maybe at swimming class, spent maybe two minutes in the actual water. Came home and she was like I did it. I totally crushed that and was so happy and I was just turning to my wife and being like, oh my gosh, and my wife's like she got the win. She thinks she won.
Speaker 1:Let her have this, we can carry this over, we can carry this along, we can build up, and I was like I'm going to the podcast and I'm telling the guys, how big of a stupid little surfboard, but she did it.
Speaker 2:She did, she conquered the fears.
Speaker 3:I think that's a loss. I think she conquered us personally as parents.
Speaker 1:That was her win, but she got in the water.
Speaker 2:She touched the water.
Speaker 4:That is a win and we're growing on this. So the whole drive home.
Speaker 2:I was like is your swimming teacher a nice teacher? Yeah, did the other people in your thing talk to you or say anything mean to you? No, do you like the water? Yeah, I was like just repeating these things over Reinforce. I swear next Monday it's all going to be gone from her head and she's going to be back into. I don't want to go.
Speaker 4:I didn from her head and she's going to be back into. I don't want to go. I didn't want to do this.
Speaker 1:You're making me do this. Oh my god, just don't sign your kids up for anything in life.
Speaker 4:It's not such a helpless feeling when they get locked into not going. My daughter this week. We went and her there was a fill-in instructor. Normally she has a female teacher and this was a male. Okay, and instantly it was like I'm not doing that Right. So then you manipulated her.
Speaker 2:Well, of course, okay, good, good, good.
Speaker 4:Tim Horton's. After this if you go to the pool. Bride central. Do your kids do any activities?
Speaker 5:Well, yeah, they do, carry on with your story.
Speaker 4:But then shout out to one of the instructors there who saw that she was very uncomfortable with that situation and she's like she can just come into my class.
Speaker 4:So, that's what got her into the pool. And then she was like halfway through her class. So when her class ended she then was like comfortable enough in the water to go back through her class. Yeah, so when her class ended she then was like comfortable enough in the water to go back to her class with the guy. Yeah, and she spent and she had a great time the rest of the time so I'll shout out to that instructor. Uh, my daughter is five oh yeah, that's a big dub for that instructor.
Speaker 1:That's a big move. That's a lot of people wouldn't do that, yeah, and they're kids too, usually kids, yeah, that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, she was probably 15 or 16.
Speaker 5:That's impressive, yeah, it was really cool. She's going places. Yeah, that YMCA instructor Read the room. What's she?
Speaker 2:doing on Monday around 4.30?.
Speaker 3:Can she come, not helping your kid Gotta go to his pool.
Speaker 2:But I just, but I just find how frustrating your kids can be and how you're trying to stay calm as a parent and do all of these gentle approaches. You're trying to do your own breathing while you're trying to coach your kid through this. It's, it's hard, it's a lot, and my wife and I I would will say we tag teamed this very well, because I came home and my wife was like I'm done, and then I tagged in, did some work there, and then I was like whew, I got the point where we had the bathing suit ready, and then it was like no, I don't want you to help me. And then she freaked out again and was like you're in I'm out.
Speaker 2:Because I'm about to pin this kid down and force the bathing suit and just throw her into the water swim.
Speaker 4:I had to do that I had to change her because she was like refusing. I'm like nope, this is what we do yep every sunday it's
Speaker 5:hard it worked I I'm still in that struggle. I have both my kids in private swimming lessons because of that reason. It was like a huge thing. The one kid, my son, has now manipulated his instructor to just build forts. They build forts in the pool to the point where I had to go up and tell the instructor I'm like yo, you're the boss in this situation you can just say no and save it for the end of the class. Maybe we don't have to build forts the whole entire class.
Speaker 3:That's it, it's it oh fuck, I hate.
Speaker 5:I hate it to the point where we've split it up now, like my wife and I were like, okay, we're gonna do them, like we're gonna do back-to-back courses and just go through hell. Right, it all in one shot, yeah, and it just got to be too much. We're like this is too painful.
Speaker 1:We're not doing it.
Speaker 5:So now we endure hell on separate days, separate days of the week. It's uh, it's not a fun situation, um, but I had a little bit of a fail, but also kind of like a win at the same time. Okay, um, we were doing. My son is like I don't know where he's getting his like forcefulness from. Okay On the weekend, Robin left and he dictated as to what he wanted for breakfast.
Speaker 5:I was like well, I'm not doing that, I'm making eggs. You want eggs, you can have your eggs. So then we settled on French toast. Okay, and. I made him his French toast. Then we settled on french toast, okay, and I made him his french toast and he, by the time I had made it and it landed on the table. He then flipped the thing up and said he didn't want it anymore. Yes, of course, and for whatever reason, robin bought this syrup that just looks and tastes and smells like plastic, like like you're trying to be healthy.
Speaker 2:I don't know what it is.
Speaker 5:But honestly it comes out and it like syrup is supposed to flow. Yeah right, this like drops out of the corn syrup is it? I don't know, sounds like it yeah I don't know, but I hate this syrup and it's like when you, even when you stop pouring it, that string just kind of comes down and it ends up looking like fishing line or something like that. Anyways, it's super gross so corn syrupy I put it on the thing and now that stuff stuck to like everywhere.
Speaker 5:So then I said out loud in front of a seven and a three-year-old for fuck's sakes yes, I've been there and then I picked up the upside down plate and now there's like what I believe to be maple syrup.
Speaker 3:But could be fucking glue.
Speaker 5:I put it on the thing, and then by put it on, I mean I threw it on the table and then I walked away to get like the paper towel and my son goes. Well, that wasn't a nice thing to do. Tries to call you out on something Like with the most amount of confidence.
Speaker 5:Oh, yeah, and I'm at a point where like, I'm like you're not reading the room kid so I'm practicing my breathing, yeah, as one does, but then I don't know which who said whatever. But um, there was a post there where you know the guy from, you know the, the show you he like, kills all of us, the people he loves gossip girl yeah ben, something, yeah, person.
Speaker 5:He was on a podcast and he said he was trying to put his son in the back seat of the car and his son was like fighting and resisting, and fighting and resisting and he like basically was frustrated at the situation so much that he was like aggressive and he saw the son kind of like get fearful and then he was like took a second back to be like yo, like realize that you're the adult and for whatever reason, that's all I could like think about when I was like taking those breaths, yeah, and and all of this is happening in the span of like two seconds from when my son is just like well, that wasn't a nice thing to do.
Speaker 5:And then me being like my three-year-old is more mature than I am right now in that moment, right, so I like get down to his eye level. He's sitting on the table, I like kneel down and I like I like embrace him and I'm like you're right, buddy, that wasn't the right thing to do. And he fucking screams in my face, crying, because he's like he was holding in emotions.
Speaker 5:I guess that scared him. So I kind of like gave him like a place to to cry anyways, he's super sick and then he sneezed on me too, so I was just like fuck.
Speaker 1:I hate this, for fuck's sake. Yeah.
Speaker 5:But it was like this beautiful moment we're talking about, just like that moment you get where you're like do we really want to do this? Do we really want to do this? Like the space that we're creating with our kids to give them the comfort to feel free, that they can be like I don't want to do swimming lessons or I don't want to do this or whatever like I think that we can kind of take those learning moments like those things are our parenting wins and we take them for granted sometimes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, does that make sense? No, it's true.
Speaker 1:Well, it's like anything right, like the bad ones always seem to stick out that much more yeah, it's hard to realize those little moments and those little wins that we do get throughout today, and that's why I love that we do this podcast where, yes, we'll vent about the things that we're struggling with, but we also like to share those wins because they are big, to put highlights on those, because they don't seem to come quite as often when you're a parent, so then you do, you have to celebrate them because they are big. We don't get a lot of wins.
Speaker 5:Sometimes it doesn't, they don't feel like wins. Yeah, especially when you're like you're in it because there's so much to our day-to-day lives that like parenting is like just one of it. Right, one other thing, yep. But to the kids, like we know everything, we are their livelihood. And for when we're like, when I notice, when I'm like not fully in it, they're kind of like I don't know, they're just like disappointed in me, kind of thing that's the feeling that I get right, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:Well, it only gets more fun when they learn. Kids will never understand the weight of their words I think that's the other thing too and it's hard, as the adult and the parent in the room where it's like to, to remember that they're not realizing what they're saying. So our daughter has, taken to murphy, who's eight now, taken to calling us bad parents or saying we're doing bad parenting when we're doing something she doesn't like.
Speaker 1:Um, so meg took her to a birthday party in the weekend and we didn't know, but they had planned kind of an after party, so after they finished, the trampoline park they were going to go back to the house for children's after party it stemmed from something, so they didn't realize they couldn't bring their food into this place. They had made a whole bunch of food that they couldn't bring in, so they're like, all right, we'll have people over to our place after fucking a cachellaella or something.
Speaker 1:Right, no, it's just a Filipino family and they love making food. All right, okay so, but we didn't find out about this until we're at the party. Probably delicious. So Meg's like, ah, like I don't know if we're going to be able to go, but now Murph's at this party for two hours with all these kids being like we're not going to somebody else's house at this time, so you got to come back. So then Murph in the back seat was just losing it the whole way home kicking the back of the seat you're a bad parent.
Speaker 1:This is terrible parenting in your head you're like well, I'm trying to do good parenting because I don't want to be up crazy late, because I know that makes you cranky the next day. But it's hard to remind yourself in those moments. They don't know the weight of the things that they're saying. They're just saying things that they know can kind of get under your skin because they just kind of want that attention. They want to be heard for the fact that, like it sucks, she's disappointed, she's upset, she's not getting to go to the party Right.
Speaker 5:Yeah, it's funny because, like for me specifically, um, I, I hear that and I'm thinking, like, how much of those are a trigger. Like those words are a trigger Because, like in my younger self, that's what I wanted to be able to say to my parent. Do you know what I'm saying? And not in a million years, but you have said it right. But, on the flip side, like I am the parent that I wanted my parents to be and I'm trying to give them that, but they don't know yeah, you know, what I'm saying the other side of it.
Speaker 1:So it's just like a constant battle of like yes, a hundred percent the plight of the modern parent, yes, see I took my wins a little differently.
Speaker 2:I took it to the board games. Uh, the kids wanted to play some board games and I was like, yeah, sure, let's play, play battleship, and I just crushed them back-to-back games of battleship boom I know, I was like I could see the other side. I'm like you're just a little kid, I know where you would put these pieces in such obvious places and just bam, bam, bam, sink it all You're such an asshole no. I was nice about it, but yeah, I'm an asshole.
Speaker 2:Because I was also. I'm just going to ride the asshole train tonight. Wait, that didn't sound right. No, but you were. No, I was just telling. Joey earlier today about playing basketball with my son outside.
Speaker 1:And I told him.
Speaker 2:I was like Ben, you might not understand this right now, but when you're a dad you will understand. One of the greatest feelings in life is blocking your son's shot. When you take a shot and you can just absolutely reject that shot and say get out of my house it's the best feeling, it is the best feeling I'm like. One day you will call me and you'll be like dad, I get it now I get it, but he's the one asking for it he's the one who's like no, don't go easy on me, I want you to try today.
Speaker 2:I was like well, this is what trying looks like and just like but he got wise, did a big pump fake.
Speaker 1:I jumped and like swatted and he held it down and then took the shot and got it and I was like there you go, you're learning there you go, but it is so satisfying.
Speaker 2:There's nothing like beating kids at sports this winter my, my brother-in-law on the other side.
Speaker 1:He did a rink in the backyard so we went. It is so satisfying there's nothing like beating kids at sports this winter. My brother-in-law on the other side. He did a rink in the backyard so we went back and we were playing hockey back there and his sons are 12 and 10, I think no 11 and 9. And then my son Cooper was out there, but he's 5. And I was going around just putting it between all their legs, Like just laying them up.
Speaker 5:And like for me, you're someone who's not as good at hockey it felt so good. Yeah, we gotta take our wins when we can get them right, guys, and while we can, yes, we. Uh. We got the trampoline with the basketball net on it. We were like we are trying to expose the kids to as much outdoor time as possible. Yep, with like the nicer weather and stuff. So, uh, yesterday everybody was like feeling healthy, whatever. We went outside.
Speaker 5:My son's really big into fishing, so we went to the water and then came back and they're like, can we go on the trampoline? And it's like it's Sunday night, it's seven, 30, like it's bedtime o'clock. You know what I mean. And we're just like screw it, let's go it, let's go, let's go on the trampoline for like a little bit. And he's been trying to land this basketball which is like a good, probably, I don't know seven feet, maybe, okay, seven and a half feet in the air and he's three. So he's like trying to throw this volleyball thing up in the air and it just keeps bonking him in the head.
Speaker 5:But he got his first basket in yesterday and just like the look of like he didn't react, he wasn't excited, he was just like yo. Do you see that?
Speaker 3:yep crushed it first try crushed it.
Speaker 5:I'm like he's been working on it for like ever since we got the trampoline and do boom, boom and we're like, yeah, and he's just looking around like what? That's what I was trying to do.
Speaker 4:I don't miss. I'm awesome at this.
Speaker 5:It's so funny to see their confidence. That's great.
Speaker 1:And if you want confidence especially if you're doing a railing coming up this spring I am you need to get Regal Ideas and I need confidence. The number one aluminum railing system on the market. Okay, component based so you can customize it to your space. I need to customize it. They've got entry level as an urban rail. What Pre-frab sections six and eight feet.
Speaker 1:Wow, then you have the Regal ideas one, two, three system, easiest component railing system put together on the market and crystal rail. If you have a little bit extra money to spend and you've got a view that you need to capture crystal rail I have all those things but the money it can be a little tricky to order because it is a component-based railing system, so there's a lot of parts negative.
Speaker 2:But the kawartha group at home hardware whether that's bridge, north kobukonk, lakefield, lindsey or millbrook, you're being recorded, they can see, are there, are there to help you out they can also see you watching the hockey game they have access.
Speaker 2:They can also inspire you watching the hockey they have access to regal one software which will help them design the deck for you put the railing on it, um, and you can test out the waters with all their different products to get pricing on all the different things. So, uh, the core of the home hardware groups got you back and, yes, I am watching the game you're doing three things, four things at once, and I can't, I say you're hating on your child, you're hating on your child.
Speaker 2:You are watching or recording this podcast I don't know if brian wants updates or not, because he put the phone down.
Speaker 4:I've been trying to read what's happening in the game just by day.
Speaker 3:What's your guess?
Speaker 2:It's playoff hockey we play in Canada. Shout out Mitch Marner, who just became a dad as well.
Speaker 5:Yes, get him on the podcast.
Speaker 2:So, Brian, what do you think the score is at right now? 4-2.
Speaker 1:For whom it's worse. 4-3.
Speaker 3:Okay, 4-3, 12 minutes left in the third.
Speaker 2:We are big Leaf fans here, except for Mark. It's been very exciting for us. We got to watch the last series winning game six at Joey's house together and celebrate together.
Speaker 5:Have you done that? Because this is something that I am very excited about the last series, winning game six at joey's house together and celebrate together. So have you? Have you done that? Because this is something that I am very excited about, like the family tradition of sports and sports watching yeah, have at what point are you there yet? Do your kids care about it? Do they enjoy it?
Speaker 2:we got them there with football. Um, because my wife is a football fan as well, so she enjoys watching a football game. Yes, so as a stealer's household, we convinced the kids to become stealers fans. Okay, we bribed them with touchdown treats, so we would have every time you get very many treats not on, depends on the season, but uh, the last four seasons, I guess.
Speaker 3:Yeah, hasn't been very many snacks and uh, we also did like touchdown or like field goal treats as well, because chris boswell can kick a lot of field goals and defensive touchdowns.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but uh, yeah, but that helped because I got them on board. They were excited, but like it would be like a family thing, like we're all sitting down watching it. So those were exciting and fun, like they would kind of go off and come back, but I can't get them to watch hockey with me, like my son will utilize like third period to be like not going to bed, type of thing. Yeah, my daughter's showing some excitement, but that's more just like she's the middle child and she just wants me to love her so she's like I know,
Speaker 2:that you love this. So I'm gonna say that I love this for you and I'm like I know what you're doing and I, I love that you're doing that for me, thank you.
Speaker 5:So let me tell you about my son when were you guys in it, though before before that, okay, when or how did you get into sports was? It like a dad thing, was it like all the things, yeah I always loved playing the sport.
Speaker 2:So I probably annoyed my dad because and my dad would say this that like I wouldn't sit still watching the game, I would want to play it. So we always, like, I would play mini sticks with my dad while he was trying to watch the game so it's probably really annoying and distracting for him non-stop I always played sports growing up so like, so that was like a family thing, but the leafs specifically was probably a dad thing for me.
Speaker 4:Yeah, he's a big leafs fan and took me to my first game.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, that's a good memory see, and I just kind of came to it. I don't really know how it started, so I'm assuming some of my brothers would watch it, because my dad is not a sports guy. Yeah, and if he is, he likes the saskatchewan rough riders most of you, lacrosse was kind of his thing.
Speaker 1:He took us to a couple lacrosse games. Um, yeah, hockey wasn't really his thing, so I really don't know. I think it was probably just peer pressure of living near toronto watching the sport that unfortunately got me into it. Um, but my son, cooper, who's five, has started to really enjoy hockey. Oh, he likes to watch it. He started to like playing it so we got him into like this little beginner hockey thing on Saturdays, which has been a lot of fun to do. But the thing about Cooper and watching sports is his team is what, by his words, whatever the team is beside daddy's team, so whoever Toronto is playing is who Cooper cheers for.
Speaker 3:I love him Either whoever.
Speaker 1:I'm playing, or pop's team, who is Montreal Canadians and for those of you who don't know hockey, that is the bitter rival of my team, so he's just decided to take the stance of the exact opposite of whoever I cheer for.
Speaker 5:Yeah, that's so amazing.
Speaker 1:He's so cute about it too, like he was watching the game and he was like oh, come on.
Speaker 2:Oh, you gotta do that. Oh, why didn't you go around there?
Speaker 3:like he's talking about it and he's like the game, oh my team's better than yours, dad.
Speaker 1:He'll be like oh, when I play hockey, I'll put it between his legs and I'll shoot it, and I'll score what?
Speaker 5:So, my son has these imaginary friends. One of them's name is TVer, who lives in the bottom of the ocean, okay and can get you anything you want I love. It okay, sounds like a good friend when he grows up, he's going to be spider-man, and spider-man's best friend is hockey or hockey, okay. So now he's like super interested in hockey and telling everybody that he is this big hockey player and I'm like you, hated hockey but you and we put that was where I tried to bribe and nothing worked.
Speaker 5:We we would go there to watch the zamboni and once the zamboni was done, he's out he didn't want to be there at all, he's interested in. So now I'm like ah, like it's something that I'm I am looking forward to, we have him in baseball, because that's another thing that he says that he does. He just plays baseball, never touched a ball, or anything, it sounds like a baseball player.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah so he.
Speaker 5:But he has that confidence that like he's like, yeah, I mean, well, I hit the ball, I catch the ball and so he starts on the 19th. So'm like I am very excited for those moments of like, like watching your kid play these sports and all I'll tell you right now the baseball thing is going to be awful.
Speaker 2:I'll tell you right now there is nothing to look forward to for kids baseball.
Speaker 4:Why.
Speaker 2:It is painful. It is one of the slowest sports because nothing's happening. So you try and keep kids entertained in the field while trying to play baseball like it is just. There's zero structure to the game. They all just rush to the ball. It's. It can be cute. I coached it when my son was super young.
Speaker 5:We did t-ball. I don't have the patience. You gotta wait till they're a little older.
Speaker 4:Oh, it was awful yeah, just you also don't have the patience for that.
Speaker 2:I mean, I did I did great with the kids. The parents loved me.
Speaker 1:It was just one of those, like you, I think it's hard when you're like, yeah, as a sports person, like when you're excited for your kids to get into sports and start playing.
Speaker 2:Yes, like seeing them actually do the sport. Um, and then it's not what you think until quite a bit later in life.
Speaker 2:Yeah like even my son was never really that interested in sports, but he's getting more and more interested because he knows that he's more athletic type person and that he can do well if he applied himself in some of them. So I'm curious to see, because I played, like I started playing hockey I think it was in grade six, um and then I played baseball in the summers, like softball and but like I remember we didn't have school sports the same way that our kids have school sports. And then as I got to high school, that's when I started playing in a lot more things and like when a boy, like boys, ages as they get older, some of the kids hit puberty earlier. Why'd?
Speaker 2:you phrase it like that when a boy well, because, like my son can like there's kids that are like a foot and a half taller than them, like oh yeah depending on their growth spurts.
Speaker 2:So it's a really awkward age for kids in sports. So even when he was playing in soccer there were kids that were just like way more developed than he was like physically. So it's hard when you're in that age bracket but there can be such a variety and even when a lot of house league sports have the two ages together, it's like an older, like a, like a 9-10 split or whatever, and if you're on the younger side of that and the other kids have hit like you, there's gonna be drastic differences right um, so I'm interested to see as he reaches his growth spurt and how that, like how the athleticism and sports side grows for him.
Speaker 2:I'm nervous for the fact of when he starts to like put me through the ringer with basketball and stuff like that. So, um, because he's definitely gonna get the payback and he's gonna let me know about it as he should.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but like I'm excited for those phases, but I think so like as a dad.
Speaker 2:It can be hard because you are excited with your boy, like you want to play those sports, you want to do those things and it just I think it takes a lot longer. Some kids are just into it super early, right, they want to go all in. Um, my kids weren't so like as a sporty person.
Speaker 5:It was hard. Yeah, how do you deal with that as a sporty person? Because I'm I don't care about sports, right, but I want it. I always wanted it when I was like I didn't start playing basketball or whatever until I was like grade seven and at that point I thought I hadn't played it long enough because there was so many people that were better than I was, right. And then same thing. I was always like hockey and lacrosse and everything I was later in life. So I was like, oh, I wish I played when I was like four, right, but I just don't. I didn't come from that type of family. We weren't at the rink all day, every day, like it just wasn't our thing. So now that I'm like at the, I'm at, I feel like I'm at this point in my life where, like, I get to kind of give that to my son, right, I just don't know how.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean right, and I think I would like, I would almost I don't know if that would be good advice or not I would say like I would almost force the thing that you would want more like I wish I had of put him into hockey more when he was younger, because he kind of got older and was like no, I don't want to. Like he had a choice. I almost would have done it when he didn't have a choice, when he's just young enough to like you're throwing them into a program and they don't really necessarily know what they're getting into, um, but my son was just always very adamant.
Speaker 2:I just didn't want it and I don't know if it's that like opposite thing of like I'm gonna like whatever dad's team isn't right and it's like oh, dad likes hockey, then I'm not gonna like hockey, where I always thought that I would have like the little mini version of yourself that's doing the things that you were doing and my son just doesn't want to be that and you gotta accept that and just enjoy the moments when they come, yeah so like when he says hey, let's go play basketball to not be like no, I'm too tired. It's like no, you've always wanted to shoot hoops with your kid outside.
Speaker 2:so when he says, go, let's go play basketball, it's like, yeah, all right, like that is the thing I dreamt of being able to do. It might not look like going to the rinks or doing the thing, like it might look different, but the opportunities are still there, to not let them pass by, maybe.
Speaker 4:I think part of it is like trying to show them the fun that it is, because, like when I'm watching the Leafs game with the kids, I like I'll let them watch the first period with me usually if it starts at seven, uh.
Speaker 3:And then, like every time the leafs score, I do a lap with each kid over my head and they all love that, and they're all waiting for the next goal, right and uh.
Speaker 4:And then they start talking about, like wanting to play hockey after that, like it's just like that like sports are fun. They might not seem that way when you're first learning it, but they're a good time. That's why I love it. So I think that's part of it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and we've been pretty in our family. We've been pretty adamant to let the kids know when I'm going out to play sports. I let them know exactly where I'm going, what I'm playing and why I'm doing it. Like I'm going to play with my friends. Like this is my version of that, right, yeah, you guys have your friends at school that you love to play with. This is my version of going to play with my friends. What happened? No goal, don't worry, um, but that that, I think, has helped with that too, right, like they see that I'm excited to go play and that I don't miss it. Like this is my thing, that I'm going to so, regardless of what's happening, like I really enjoy this. This is why I'm going to do it like similar to brian. Like I like watching that first period with them and obviously I get fired up when the goal happens and I'm excited and they they see and feed off of that, right.
Speaker 2:So I think that's something that helps roll that do you think that and I can't remember well enough, but but like how your kids' friends impact the things that they do.
Speaker 5:My daughter literally said to me yesterday that she wants to be a teacher because her friend at school wants to be a teacher. Right and I was like that's not how that works, yeah.
Speaker 2:Where my son, I think, had a hard time with some of the hockey kids at school and I think that's also why he didn't want to do it.
Speaker 2:But then I also overthink it as a parent, thinking if I had gotten him into that, then he might not have had a hard time with those types of kids. Maybe he would have been friends with them, maybe he would have meshed in easier with them. So, like I said to him the other day, it was like all right, you got to turn off your game. He was playing with his friends, the Leaf game starting, and he was like oh, I was like if your friends aren't watching the leaf game.
Speaker 1:They are bad influences in your life and we need. We need your friends to be watching the leaf game too is this sorry?
Speaker 2:if their parents aren't parenting them well enough that they are watching the leaf game right now then something's wrong this is all I beg to Is this a bad dad move.
Speaker 4:I canceled family and movie night for the Leafs playoff game. No, that's okay. I don't think so.
Speaker 1:So here's the thing Did you reschedule?
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay, yeah. But they were sitting down ready to watch the movie and you're like, nope, it's getting worse. No, that's not happening.
Speaker 2:I have few things in this world.
Speaker 5:Leafs play off games, trumps, all I'm sorry, how did that go over with Maddie?
Speaker 4:Oh, it was fine, she knew, she knew.
Speaker 5:She knows me well enough.
Speaker 4:We just didn't prep the kids at all. I see fear in you.
Speaker 2:Yes, oh my god nice. That's a two goal buffer now oh my goodness, six minutes left on the dot. Okay, five, three leafs translate um okay they had a nice uh, little chance, coming down our way crashed I don't care about that even a breakaway. Pass out matthew nye's on a breakaway backhand sauce top corner.
Speaker 1:He's the latest Leafs stud left winger for the Toronto Maple Leafs is who you wish your kid was. I mean what?
Speaker 4:absolutely not just savage keep in mind that the people that are listening to this, this is like two weeks later we should be out of the playoffs by the time you hear this and there's a very real possibility that that's gonna happen we're enjoying these moments while we have them, okay, and the coach sully on
Speaker 3:the bench was like super big he was all
Speaker 2:love it sorry, well, wanted to take a second here. Okay, just to talk about my youngest daughter, abby, and how fuck her oh wow, that took a turn.
Speaker 1:I thought this is, this is a dad we can talk about, we can turn, we can turn this around.
Speaker 2:We can start this is some things God bless you that I wanted to say at home, but I wasn't allowed to say because she was there you can bring it here.
Speaker 3:Hold on, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, before you say the internet is forever, dave.