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	<title>Parenting - The Dad Jam &#187; Head Jammer</title>
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	<link>http://thedadjam.com</link>
	<description>Fun, help, advice, tips and stories, all about parenting and being a dad.</description>
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		<title>Another Fun Thing to Do with the Kids in Vancouver &#8211; Carousel Theatre!</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/things-to-do-vancouver/another-fun-thing-to-do-with-the-kids-in-vancouver-carousel-theatre/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/things-to-do-vancouver/another-fun-thing-to-do-with-the-kids-in-vancouver-carousel-theatre/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Dec 2011 20:16:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Things to do Vancouver]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1570</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Attention Vancouver Moms and Dads! If you&#8217;re feeling kinda stuck indoors and bored this winter, with the colder than normal (and rainy, as normal) days, here&#8217;s another brilliant idea to get out and have fun ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Attention Vancouver Moms and Dads! If you&#8217;re feeling kinda stuck indoors and bored this winter, with the colder than normal (and rainy, as normal) days, here&#8217;s another brilliant idea to get out and have fun with your kids &#8212; take them to watch a play at the Carousel Theatre for Young People on Granville Island!</p>
<p>The Carousel Theatre for Young People always has great plays for kids (and uh, young people and adults too of course), always put on by a very professional and talented group of artists. They truly put on an amazing show that will wow you and your kids, and have your whole family laughing and having a great time.</p>
<div id="attachment_1572" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 229px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/carouseltheatre_wizardofoz_4654.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1572" title="Dorothy and Scarecrow - Wizard of Oz - Carousel Theatre" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/carouseltheatre_wizardofoz_4654-219x300.jpg" alt="" width="219" height="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Darren Burkett as Scarecrow and Robyn Wallis as Dorothy</p></div>
<p>I was invited to watch their current production, &#8220;The Wizard of Oz&#8221; and let me tell you, it was awesome! They did a fantastic job reviving this classic, and both me and my 5 year old son Smarty Pants loved it.</p>
<p>I was a little worried about taking him at first, because I know he is scared of witches, but I told him beforehand there would be a witch in it and that she was just pretending. To my great relief, he actually thought the witch was really funny and was laughing at her remarks (she really was funny at a lot of parts &#8211; well done).</p>
<p>One of the highlights was definitely the munchkins &#8211; all played by the adult cast on their knees. You have to see it to believe it- we were cracking up. My son is still singing &#8220;The Lollipop Guild&#8221; a week later. Hearing all those songs again really brought me back to my childhood too.</p>
<p>If you want to see the Wizard of Oz at Carousel Theatre, you need to hurry, as they are selling out really fast and breaking their box office records! Not surprising with such a great show and a story that people of all ages love (many people have told me it is their all time favourite story/movie). They just added another show too on Sunday, January 1, 2012 at<br />
2:00pm to meet the high demand!</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s some additional info and links for you. If you don&#8217;t manage to get tickets for The Wizard of Oz, follow them on Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date on availability of tickets for their upcoming productions.</p>
<p><strong>Info about The Wizard of Oz at Carousel Theatre:</strong></p>
<p>VENUE Waterfront Theatre (1412 Cartwright Street, Vancouver)</p>
<p>DATES December 2 &#8211; 31, 2011 (Various Times) &#8211; New show just added on Jan 1, 2012!</p>
<p>TICKETS (604) 685-6217</p>
<p>INFO <a title="Carousel Theatre Home" href="http://www.carouseltheatre.ca" target="_blank">www.carouseltheatre.ca</a></p>
<p>FACEBOOK <a title="Carousel Theatre Facebook" href="http://www.facebook.com/carouseltheatre" target="_blank">Carousel Theatre</a></p>
<p>TWITTER <a title="Carousel Theatre Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/CarouselTheatre" target="_blank">CarouselTheatre</a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>THE WIZARD OF OZ BLURB:</strong></p>
<p>Follow the yellow brick road with Dorothy and the gang in The Wizard of Oz!</p>
<p>This brave adventure follows Dorothy and her three strange friends; a Scarecrow with no brain, a Tin Man with no heart, and a Lion without any courage as they journey on to see the great and powerful Wizard of Oz.</p>
<p>During Dorothy’s search for the Wizard she discovers the true meaning of friendship, personal growth, and most important: there is no place like home!</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>ABOUT CAROUSEL THEATRE</strong></p>
<p><a><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-1573" title="carouseltheatre-logo_black" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/carouseltheatre-logo_black-300x277.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="277" /></a>Carousel Theatre, now in its 37th season, has produced 147 plays for young people. In its early years, the company performed at several different venues in Vancouver including the Arts Club Seymour Street and the Vancouver East Cultural Centre before moving to their home on Granville Island, where they operate a small arts complex that includes administrative offices and two rehearsal halls. Carousel is one of the long-term resident tenants at the Waterfront Theatre on Granville Island.</p>
<p>Each season more than 40,000 young people and their families benefit from Carousel Theatre’s unique programming. Under the vision of Artistic Director Carole Higgins, Carousel Theatre stages a mainstage season of Literary Classics at the Waterfront Theatre, a Teen Shakespeare Program each summer and a year-round Theatre School for young people ages 3 to 17 years. Carousel Theatre also runs a mentorship program for fledgling theatre for young audiences companies and a new play development program.</p>
<p>Carousel Theatre plays a unique role in the ecology of our community, and is the only theatre company in BC that produces a fully professional season of mainstage programming especially for young people.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Return</strong> to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam" href="http://thedadjam.com">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>Three Tips for Surviving Your First Week with Three Kids</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/three-tips-for-surviving-your-first-week-with-three-kids/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/three-tips-for-surviving-your-first-week-with-three-kids/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 04 Dec 2011 06:27:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advice and Tips]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1562</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hold onto your shirts! The Dad Jam family has grown! We recently welcomed our son, who I&#8217;ll call Smarty Pants 2, to the world, making us a family of five. Three kids!! (by the way, ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Hold onto your <a title="Shirts" href="http://www.superdry.com/mens/shirts" target="_blank">shirts</a>! The Dad Jam family has grown! We recently welcomed our son, who I&#8217;ll call Smarty Pants 2, to the world, making us a family of five. Three kids!! (by the way, I am calling him Smarty Pants 2 for two reasons: 1) I can&#8217;t think of a better name right now, and 2) he looks a heck of a lot like Smarty Pants did when he was born.</p>
<div id="attachment_1565" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 280px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/baby10.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1565" title="Three Kids" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/baby10-270x300.jpg" alt="Three kids" width="270" height="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Smary Pants and Smarty Pants 2</p></div>
<p>Smarty Pants 2 is a little over two weeks old now, and somehow we managed to survive our first two weeks with three kids&#8230; mostly thanks to the awesomeness and strength of my lovely wife, Love Buns.</p>
<p>To celebrate, I would like to share three tips with you on how to survive your first week or two with your third child, should you find yourself in the same situation as me. Of course, everyone&#8217;s situation is different, but this worked for us, and maybe it will help you too:</p>
<p><strong>1) Don&#8217;t let anyone into your house in the first week unless they are carrying bags of food</strong> (preferably food that you can freeze) &#8211; this may sound a bit selfish, or odd&#8230; but it is true. Your first week with three kids is hectic&#8230; you and your spouse are now outnumbered by your kids&#8230; and one of them is a teeny tiny baby that needs a tonne of undivided attention from at least one of you pretty much 24/7. Having visitors during the first week can add to the commotion, since your baby is not on a schedule yet, and you haven&#8217;t fully adjusted to having another child in your household. But, if said visitors bring some food with them when they come to visit, it is a big plus. Finding time to cook meals will be difficult, so any pre-made meals you get will be huge time savers. Especially if you can freeze some of them for later in the week when you&#8217;re really in a pinch.</p>
<p>I must say, we have awesome friends, and everyone who came to visit us was kind enough to bring some food with them when they visited. We didn&#8217;t ask for it, they were just thoughtful and wanted to help us out, and we gladly accepted the help. It really made a huge difference and we are very grateful.</p>
<p><strong>2) Build a village</strong> &#8211; they say it takes a village to raise a family, and when you have three kids, it is truer than ever. Find out how your friends can help you, and get paid help as well if you need it. For example, we have a friend who was able to pick our son up from school for the first week after Smarty Pants 2 was born. Other friends of ours took him to school every day. What a huge help that was! We have other friends that had our daughter over for play dates with their daughter&#8230;another huge help. I could go on&#8230;</p>
<p>Of course, try to reciprocate as much as you can&#8230;you don&#8217;t want to take take take without giving anything back, so have some play date exchanges, give thank-you gifts, etc. In essence, build a community with other parents to the best extent possible.</p>
<p><strong>3) Rest and enjoy as much as you can</strong> &#8211; luckily the baby will sleep quite a lot in the first couple of weeks. Take advantage of this time to try and rest as much as you can. If you followed steps 1 and 2 above, you should have saved some time in your day for resting. If you&#8217;re a working dad, hopefully you&#8217;ll take at least a week off of work too, and use the time to help your wife and also get some rest yourself. And of course, enjoy this time with your precious new little baby. Unless you are prepared to have four or more kids (i.e. you are really brave or really crazy), this will be your last little baby. So enjoy the time, and it will make it go that much smoother.</p>
<p>Leave a comment and let us know what you think of these tips, and if you have any other tips to share! Cheers and all the best!</p>
<p>Return to <a title="The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>Looking for a Good Family Movie?</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/tv/looking-for-a-good-family-movie/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/tv/looking-for-a-good-family-movie/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 22 Oct 2011 09:18:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[tv]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1555</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[About a month ago, I jammed about the trials and tribulations we have as parents trying to find good family movies on TV that everyone in the family can enjoy. I recommended P&#38;G and Walmart&#8217;s ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>About a month ago, I jammed about the trials and tribulations we have as parents trying to find good family movies on TV that everyone in the family can enjoy. I recommended P&amp;G and Walmart&#8217;s &#8220;Family Movie Night&#8221; because of its content specifically geared to delivering what parents look for in a family movie.</p>
<p>I don&#8217;t watch a lot of TV, nor do I watch very many movies with my kids. I prefer to take the kids out to the playground, play games with them, build Lego houses, bridges, and towers with them, and read to them. Above all, I make sure the kids get plenty of exercise and creative play time before sitting down to watch a family movie.</p>
<p>I enjoy a good movie as much as the next guy. The problem I have though, is that it is REALLY hard to find a good movie that everyone in my family will enjoy, and that won&#8217;t scare the kids (my kids happen to be very sensitive to any scary characters or situations in movies).</p>
<p>And I am not alone in my search for good quality family movie options.</p>
<p>As I mentioned in my family movie jams, Walmart and P&amp;G conducted some cool research that reveals parents are quite keen on finding good family entertainment options.</p>
<p>Here are some of their findings:</p>
<ul>
<li>94 percent of parents surveyed said it&#8217;s extremely or very important that their families spend time together and entertainment is a primary way their families get together.</li>
<li>81 percent said they enjoy watching movies with their families and 75 percent enjoy watching TV together.</li>
<li>69 percent of moms said they wish there were more family-friendly TV programs that they can enjoy with their kids.</li>
<li>75 percent of moms admitted to having to change the channel because of inappropriate content in a program they thought was family-friendly.</li>
<li>71 of parents would go out of their way to find family-friendly TV programs.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you are similar to the majority of those parents surveyed, and are at your wits end (like me) because you can&#8217;t find any family-friendly movies that meet your stringent criteria, one option you have is to expand your selection. You can check out <a href="http://www.satellitetvfamily.com/order.html" target="_blank">http://www.SatelliteTVFamily.com/</a> for a few options regarding movie channels and programs that come with Satellite TV. Through these options, you can gain access to complete libraries of family movies. Having more options might help you to find some family movies that are just right for you and your family.</p>
<p>And again, don&#8217;t forget to balance out your family movie time with family sports time, family game time, family crafts time, family story time, and family dinner time too! The more things you can do as a family, the better!</p>
<p>What do you think? How do you like to get your family entertainment?</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
<p><span style="color: #c0c0c0;">Note: SatelliteTVFamily.com provided sponsorship for this post, however the opinions expressed in this post are mine.</span></p>
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		<title>A few cool tips for parents who want to work flexibly from home</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/tips-for-parents-who-want-to-work-flexibly-from-home/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/tips-for-parents-who-want-to-work-flexibly-from-home/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Oct 2011 05:11:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advice and Tips]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Products]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1539</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As you know as a parent, parenting is a full-time job in itself&#8230; actually it is a triple-time job, with no breaks, work on weekends&#8230; and, by the way, no cash compensation.
There is a much ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>As you know as a parent, parenting is a full-time job in itself&#8230; actually it is a triple-time job, with no breaks, work on weekends&#8230; and, by the way, no cash compensation.</p>
<div id="attachment_1552" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 209px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/bestjob.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1552" title="The Best Job There Is" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/bestjob-199x300.jpg" alt="" width="199" height="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">The Best Job There Is!</p></div>
<p>There is a much greater reward than any cash compensation could ever replace though&#8230; that is, the smiles, the kisses, the hugs, the love&#8230; seeing them grow and develop.. the list goes on and on.</p>
<p>But of course, we all need some cash to get by. So what can parents do to earn real money, and still not miss out on those wonderful moments with the kids?</p>
<p>An office job is one option&#8230; but&#8230; we&#8217;ve all seen the tired-eyed mom or dad show up at the office with burp-up stains on his or her shoulder&#8230; heck, I&#8217;ve been that guy in the office many times. Having a full-time office job with kids can really be tough. I remember a time when my son was still a baby&#8230; I would get home from the office at 6pm or so&#8230;already exhausted&#8230; have dinner, and put him to bed. I hardly got to see him, and those hours that I saw him, he was mostly tired and cranky.</p>
<p>Lucky enough for me, my job now is pretty flexible and I can work from home. I have shifted my hours to earlier hours in the day, so, I am still tired, but I finish early enough that I can spend time in the afternoon with my kids. If you ever get a chance to have a job with flexible hours like that, take it! It is really great  to be able to spend more quality time with the kids.</p>
<p>If you are looking for ways to work flexibly from home, here are a few examples of the possibilities, to get your creative juices flowing:</p>
<p>-Find an employer who allows flexible work arrangements so that you can work from home (kind of like my employer). Best Buy is an example of an employer that is leading this movement.</p>
<p>-Do some freelancing &#8211; like website development or graphic design (there are a lot of websites where you can offer your freelancing services).</p>
<p>-If you are the crafty type, sell your crafts on sites like Etsy or eBay.</p>
<p>-If you are web-savvy, try out some online affiliate marketing, through sites like Clickbank, and/or set up some websites where you can sell your own products or services &#8211; check out the book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0982769601/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=dadadv-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369&amp;creativeASIN=0982769601">Get Rich Click!: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money on the Internet</a><img style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=dadadv-20&amp;l=as2&amp;o=1&amp;a=0982769601&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399369" alt="" width="1" height="1" border="0" /> for some great Internet business ideas and tips on how to put them into action.</p>
<p>All of these ideas can help you work flexibly from home, so you can choose your hours, work as little or as much as you want, and still bring in some money to help support your family. Of course, some will work better than others, and it will also depend on your talents and how much effort you are willing and able to put in, but choose what works best for you, your financial situation, your family, and your schedule.</p>
<p>Also, if you happen to be in the UK, check out WorkingMums.co.uk, for some good postings and ideas on <a title="Working Mums" href="http://www.workingmums.co.uk" target="_blank">part-time jobs</a> , flexible jobs, work from home jobs, etc, for mums!</p>
<p>If you decide to make the move to working from home, I wish you all the best and guarantee you will enjoy it!</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam" href="http://thedadjam.com">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>My Take on Reverse Psychology with Picky Eater Kids</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/my-take-on-reverse-psychology-with-picky-eater-kids/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/my-take-on-reverse-psychology-with-picky-eater-kids/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 04 Oct 2011 23:44:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advice and Tips]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1530</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Getting your kids to eat something other than pasta or pizza &#8211; its right up there with shopping for mens clothing for yourself &#8211; you don&#8217;t always want to do it, but every once in ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Getting your kids to eat something other than pasta or pizza &#8211; its right up there with shopping for <a title="Men's Clothing" href="http://www.ellos.co.uk/categories/men/201.aspx" target="_blank">mens clothing</a> for yourself &#8211; you don&#8217;t always want to do it, but every once in awhile it needs to be done.</p>
<p>Why, you ask?</p>
<div id="attachment_1535" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 209px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/hotchocolate.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1535" title="Reverse Psychology for Picky Eaters" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/hotchocolate-199x300.jpg" alt="Reverse Psychology for Picky Eaters" width="199" height="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">If its hot chocolate, she&#39;ll try it.</p></div>
<p>Those of you with picky kids will know&#8230; it is a struggle&#8230; every night the same old story&#8230; try it&#8230; I don&#8217;t want to&#8230; just try it&#8230; I don&#8217;t want to&#8230; one bite&#8230; no!</p>
<p>If this sounds like you and your kids, you are not alone. I&#8217;m with ya&#8230; and I&#8217;ll share with you a little trick I tried with my 5-year-old son Smarty Pants last night that worked really well.</p>
<p>So, my dear wife made potato soup, and swiftly left the house as soon as dinner was served. All alone, I was left to fend for myself, with two children frowning at the bowls of soup set before them. I knew I had to come up with an approach&#8230; and fast.</p>
<p>It started with the usual: &#8220;I don&#8217;t want this&#8221;&#8230; &#8220;Just try it&#8221; ping-pong&#8230; but&#8230; then I threw in a curve ball. (Is it possible to throw a curve ball in ping-pong?)</p>
<p>Anyway&#8230; it went a little something like this:</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;Don&#8217;t eat it!&#8221;</p>
<p>Smarty Pants: (giggles&#8230; a little taken aback)</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;It tastes really good, so you shouldn&#8217;t eat it&#8221;</p>
<p>Smarty Pants: (still looking confused, surprised, and giggling).</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;If you eat it, you are going to like it, and then we are going to have to make it all the time for you, and that is too much work. So it is better that you don&#8217;t try it.&#8221;</p>
<p>Smarty Pants: &#8220;But are you going to eat yours?&#8221;</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;Yes&#8221;</p>
<p>Smarty Pants: &#8220;Then I am going to eat mine.&#8221;</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;No, don&#8217;t&#8230; you are going to like it and then we are going to have to make it all the time, and we don&#8217;t want that.&#8221;</p>
<p>Smarty Pants: &#8220;I am going to try it.&#8221;</p>
<p>Me: &#8220;Okay.&#8221;</p>
<p>And he tried it, and he liked it. Hurrah!</p>
<p>Mind you, Smarty Pants is a little more apt to try things by nature, so I can&#8217;t guarantee this technique will work with all kids (it only <em>kinda</em> worked with my daughter, who NEVER wants to try anything&#8230; she tried it, but then broke into tears as soon as the soup hit her tongue).</p>
<p>In any case&#8230; it was kinda fun, and it made him laugh, so try it yourself and see how it goes! (Actually&#8230; don&#8217;t try it&#8230; the technique is too good, and then you are going to have to use it all the time, and ask me for more tips&#8230; so please don&#8217;t try it!)</p>
<p>Till next time, happy parenting, and leave a comment to let me know what you think!</p>
<p>Cheers.</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam" href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>Family Movie Update: Game Time: Tackling the Past</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/videos/family-movie-update-game-time-tackling-the-past/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/videos/family-movie-update-game-time-tackling-the-past/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 29 Aug 2011 03:46:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Videos]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1510</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Those of you who followed my adventures on the set of Walmart and Proctor and Gamble&#8217;s 8th Family Movie Night in my Jam here &#8230; you&#8217;ll know that a hot new Family Movie is airing ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Those of you who followed my adventures on the set of Walmart and Proctor and Gamble&#8217;s 8th Family Movie Night <a title="Family Movie Night Jam" href="http://thedadjam.com/videos/8-reasons-to-watch-an-upcoming-family-movie-night/" target="_blank">in my Jam here</a> &#8230; you&#8217;ll know that a hot new Family Movie is airing soon!</p>
<p><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/gametime.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1516 alignleft" title="gametime" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/gametime-140x300.jpg" alt="" width="140" height="300" /></a>The movie is called <strong>&#8220;Game Time: Tackling the Past&#8221;</strong> and it is <strong>airing on Saturday, September 3 on NBC at 8pm ET/7pm CT.</strong></p>
<p>I caught a sneak-peek preview of the whole movie, and watched it with my three year-old daughter and five year-old son. My son loves football, so he was excited to watch it with me&#8230; my daughter was excited to watch the football sequences too, although she kept calling it &#8220;soccer&#8221; (but to her defense, she also speaks German, where &#8220;soccer&#8221; is call &#8220;Fussball.&#8221;)</p>
<p>The film tells the story of Jake Walker, a pro football player who hasn&#8217;t been in contact with his family for several years, after getting into an argument with his dad and then leaving for the pros. He returns home when he hears news of his father&#8217;s heart attack, and while home he &#8220;tackles the past&#8221; and must face the issues with his dad and brother, that have gone unresolved for many years.</p>
<p>I really enjoyed watching the film, and so did my kids. The football sequences kept the movie exciting and interesting for them, and they still got the overall message of the film, which was the importance of communication and teamwork, both on the field as a football team, and off the field as a family.</p>
<p>What I like about this movie is that it is fun (football, fun characters, including some cool kids) to keep the whole family engaged, and it conveys a lot of good family messages at the same time. Equally, there is no violence or swearing and no scary or evil characters. So you never have to worry about covering your kid&#8217;s eyes or ears, and can really sit back and enjoy it with them.</p>
<p>After the movie, you&#8217;ll have lots of good topics to talk about with your kids, including the importance of communication in your family and the importance of teamwork and helping others.</p>
<p>The movie also does a nice job touching on the importance of family. I liked how those characters with strong family ties were really portrayed as the ones who &#8220;have it all.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>Net-net: </strong>Game Time: Tackling the Past is a great family movie for any family to watch. For fathers and sons, and particularly fathers and sons who love football, it is a definite must see! This is definitely a movie that will leave you and your familly with the &#8220;warm and fuzzies.&#8221;</p>
<p>For more information, <a title="Game Time: Tackling The Past Official Site" href="http://www.familymovienight.com/game-time-tackling-the-past/" target="_blank">visit the Official Game Time: Tackling the Past website.</a></p>
<p>Go ahead and <a title="Family Movie Night on Facebook" href="http://www.facebook.com/familymovienight" target="_blank">Like It on Facebook</a> too!</p>
<p>Don&#8217;t forget: The movie is called <strong>&#8220;Game Time: Tackling the Past&#8221;</strong> and it is <strong>airing on Saturday, September 3 on NBC at 8pm ET/7pm CT.</strong></p>
<p>Until then, watch the trailer- right here, right now!:</p>
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<p><strong>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></strong></p>
<p><span style="color: #888888;">Nota Bene: I  wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Dad Central  Consulting on behalf of P&amp;G and received a promotional item to thank  me for taking the time to participate. The opinions expressed here are all my own.</span></p>
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		<title>The Brother P-Touch Project: Episode 1 &#8211; How Tough Are Those Labels?</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/products/the-brother-p-touch-project-episode-1-how-tough-are-those-labels/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/products/the-brother-p-touch-project-episode-1-how-tough-are-those-labels/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:08:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Products]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1486</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We here at The Dad Jam are all about bringing you news about cool products that can help you make your life as parent easier and more organized.
So we are happy to take part in ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>We here at The Dad Jam are all about bringing you news about cool products that can help you make your life as parent easier and more organized.</p>
<p>So we are happy to take part in a series of adventures in getting organized with Brother P-Touch. We&#8217;ll be putting Brother P-Touch labels to the test, and using them to get organized. We&#8217;ll report back to you how we get along with the labeller and labels, and if they live up to The Dad Jam&#8217;s toughness tests.</p>
<p>Here, in Episode 1, we&#8217;ll put some Brother P-Touch labels through the ringer and see if they stay stuck and maintain their integrity. Then, in Episode 2, we&#8217;ll show you how we used the labels to get ourselves organized. In Episode 3, we&#8217;ll wrap it all up and let you know how the labels are holding up against everyday use.</p>
<p><strong>Episode 1:</strong></p>
<p>Episode 1 began with the arrival of our Brother P-Touch Extreme Test Kit.</p>
<p><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8726_resize.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-1489" title="P-Touch Test Kit" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8726_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a></p>
<p><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8733_resize.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-1490" title="IMG_8733_resize" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8733_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a></p>
<p>The test kit included: P-Touch Sample Labels, a Plexi-Glass Block, Nail Polish Remover, bleach, a brush, and a scrubber sponge.</p>
<p>Our mission: to see how well the label would hold up to some intense scrubbing and an abrasives.</p>
<p>For our first test, we subjected the &#8220;Test Zone&#8221; label on the plexi-glass block to the following abuse:</p>
<p>1. Nail Polish Remover</p>
<p>2. Intese brushing</p>
<p>3. Bleach</p>
<p>4. More intense brushing</p>
<p>Here are the before, during, and after photos:</p>
<div id="attachment_1491" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8857_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1491" title="Test Zone Before" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8857_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Before</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1493" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8859_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1493" title="Test Zone During" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8859_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">During</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1494" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8860_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1494" title="Test Zone During 2" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8860_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">More During, and Enduring</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1500" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8866_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1500" title="Test Zone After" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8866_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">After - Still looking Great!</p></div>
<p>Looks like the labels were holding up well! So for the next test, we upped the ante:</p>
<p>1. Bleach</p>
<p>2. Sponge Scrubbing</p>
<p>3. Brushing</p>
<p>4. 5 minutes of water pouring onto the label</p>
<p>5. Nail Polish Remover</p>
<p>6. More Brushing</p>
<p>7. More Sponge Scrubbing</p>
<p>Did the label hold up? See for yourself:</p>
<div id="attachment_1492" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8858_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1492" title="Tough Before" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8858_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Before</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1497" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8863_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1497" title="Tough During" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8863_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">During</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1498" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8864_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1498" title="Tough Durin 2" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8864_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Another during shot...</p></div>
<div id="attachment_1501" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8867_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1501" title="Tough After" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8867_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">After the test - still looking as good as new!</p></div>
<p>As you can see, we couldn&#8217;t do anything to break these labels! The text was totally unaffected, and the labels did not come off at all!</p>
<p>The only thing that was damaged in this whole process, were our fingers. They were totally red from all the scrubbing and chemicals!</p>
<div id="attachment_1502" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8873_resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1502" title="IMG_8873_resize" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_8873_resize-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">This testing did more damage to our fingers than to the labels!</p></div>
<p>So there you have it. Looks like we have some really tough labels on our hands. Looking forward to using the labels to get organized, and putting them to the test in our house. Stay tuned for Episode 2!</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
<p><span style="color: #888888;">Nota Bene: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central  Consulting on behalf of Brother P-Touch and received a product and gift  card to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for  taking the time to participate.</span></p>
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		<title>Six Great Tips for Getting Your Family Active</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/six-great-tips-for-getting-your-family-active/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/six-great-tips-for-getting-your-family-active/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 12:20:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advice and Tips]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1475</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Feeling sluggish? Kids watching too much TV? We have an awesome guest jam today from guest Jammer Kathleen Thomas of Primrose Day Care Schools. Kathleen shares some amazing tips for getting your kids and family ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Feeling sluggish? Kids watching too much TV? We have an awesome guest jam today from guest Jammer Kathleen Thomas of Primrose Day Care Schools. Kathleen shares some amazing tips for getting your kids and family active. Enjoy!</p>
<p><strong>Daily Physical Activity: the Foundation for a Healthy Lifestyle &#8211; Six Great Tips for Getting Your Family Active</strong></p>
<p>By: Kathleen Thomas, <a href="http://primroseschools.com" target="_blank">Primrose Day Care Schools</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/active.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-1479" title="Active Family Playing" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/active.jpg" alt="Active Family Playing" width="160" height="240" /></a>Experts suggest that young children need to accumulate at least 60 minutes and up to several hours of physical activity every day. Unfortunately, many children are not nearly as active as they need to be. Along with poor diet, physical inactivity has contributed to a large increase in childhood obesity in the United   States in the past 20 years. The following statistics are unsettling:</p>
<ul>
<li>Between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents are obese nationwide. (Source: American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)</li>
<li>The percentage of obese or overweight children is at or above 30 percent in 30 states. (Source: Trust for America&#8217;s Health)</li>
</ul>
<p>Research has shown that children who develop basic motor skills such as throwing, catching, kicking, jumping, skipping, and balance are more likely to grow into healthy active adults. Studies have shown that daily physical activity helps children academically as well. Learning basic physical skills is essential to the healthy growth and development of your child.</p>
<p>Dr. Stephen Sanders, author, professor, and director of the School  of Physical Education and Exercise Science at the University of South   Florida is a member of the Primrose Schools Education Advisory Board. He says that children do not necessarily learn physical skills on their own. He has found they need guidance and assistance from adults, challenging activities, and opportunities to practice and refine physical skills.</p>
<p>The amount of time children spend daily in physical activity is decreasing, and it will take a determined effort from parents to reverse this trend.</p>
<p>What can parents do to teach their children about the importance of being physically active and help them learn these necessary skills? Trying the six tips below will help you and your family create a fun environment for physical activity and will contribute to everyone’s physical health.</p>
<p>Six Great Tips for Getting Your Family Active:</p>
<ul>
<li>Find appropriate, safe spaces for quality physical activity: Provide safe spaces inside and outside for your child to be active.</li>
<li>Ensure the availability of age-appropriate supplies: Being physically active is like learning to read, write, or do math problems in that each requires proper materials or equipment.</li>
<li>Provide abundant supplies of balls, hoops, hockey sticks, bats, paddles, racquets, musical instruments, jump ropes, etc. They need balls of all sizes, shapes, and weights such as beanbags, sock balls, and rubber balls. Equipment should be soft, lightweight, and made for children.</li>
<li>Be active with your children: Don’t just send your children outside to play&#8211;be a role model!  Go outside with them and participate in games and other activities that require physical exertion!</li>
<li>Use sidewalk chalk to create your own four-square or hopscotch grids; blow bubbles then chase them around the yard to see who can catch them; go on a walk around the neighborhood or through a park as a family; play music and dance inside or outside; and when the weather is nice put on your bathing suits and run through the sprinklers.</li>
<li>Promote a feeling of success when you play with your child. If your child is not yet able to successfully throw and hit a target, encourage them to move a little closer so they can be successful. Skills are acquired incrementally. Children who do not experience success have a tendency to quit and not practice. Acknowledge their efforts with specific comments. No matter what your child’s skill level is, be a supportive coach. They will benefit from your encouragement.</li>
</ul>
<p>When children come into the world, physical activity is at the very center of their lives. They have a mission to learn to crawl, walk, run, throw, catch, and kick. If they are going to enjoy participating in physical activities now and as adults, they need to build on that foundation of success an enjoyment that begins in infancy. So, grab a ball, badminton racket, or jump rope and set aside time each day to play with your child!</p>
<p>Leave a comment and tell us what you think and what you are doing to keep your family active!</p>
<p>Thank you Kathleen for the amazing tips!</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting: The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>1 Smart Tip to Get Your Child to Happily Do What You Want</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/get-your-child-to-do-what-you-want/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/advice-and-tips/get-your-child-to-do-what-you-want/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2011 04:33:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advice and Tips]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1468</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I stumbled upon this method of getting my son to happily go along with what I want him to do partly by accident, and you won&#8217;t believe how easy it is and how well it ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I stumbled upon this method of getting my son to happily go along with what I want him to do partly by accident, and you won&#8217;t believe how easy it is and how well it works!</p>
<p>You are going to want to give it a try if you haven&#8217;t discovered it already yourself. If you have discovered it already, I bet you use it quite often.</p>
<p>What is it?</p>
<p>All you need to do is add great significance to whatever it is you want your child to do or go along with. It can really make things fun for you and your child. You just need to use your imagination and be playful.</p>
<div id="attachment_1472" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 209px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/rescuejeans.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1472" title="Getting Kids to Listen" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/rescuejeans-199x300.jpg" alt="Getting Kids to Listen" width="199" height="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Wearing his Rescue Jeans</p></div>
<p>I&#8217;ll give you an example, from my own experience, which is actually how I stumbled upon this method in the first place.</p>
<p>While helping my five year old son get dressed one day, I handed him a pair of <a title="Jeans" href="http://www.very.co.uk/men/jeans/e/b/2023.end" target="_blank">jeans</a> to put on. He looked at me with a strange look, as if he didn&#8217;t real want to wear jeans that day. But then, he looked at the jeans again, and looked back at me.</p>
<p>&#8220;Are these &#8216;Rescue Jeans?&#8217;&#8221; he asked me.</p>
<p>Not really knowing what to say&#8230; I went with a&#8230; &#8220;Yes, those are Rescue Jeans.&#8221;</p>
<p>He looked back at the jeans, and happily put them on.</p>
<p>It made me realize that if we want to get our kids to go along with certain things, we just have to make them sound cooler than they are.</p>
<p>Another time, my son didn&#8217;t want to sit in a certain chair.</p>
<p>&#8220;Why do I have to sit in THAT chair?&#8221; he asked.</p>
<p>&#8220;Because that is a special chair.&#8221; I said. (Okay, not quite as cool as &#8220;Rescue Jeans&#8221;&#8230; but hey, I&#8217;m older and have less imagination).</p>
<p>&#8220;Okay&#8221; he said, happily climbing onto the chair.</p>
<p>So next time you find yourself in a situation where your child doesn&#8217;t want to put on a certain piece of clothing, or sit in a certain chair, or go somewhere with you, or just plain isn&#8217;t listening&#8230; try making it sound cooler and more appealing to them! Jeans can be &#8220;Rescue Jeans&#8221;&#8230; why not? Whatever works right?</p>
<p>Now I am off to my &#8220;Super Cool Bed&#8221;&#8230; until next time!</p>
<p>Return to <a title="Parenting - The Dad Jam Home" href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Parenting &#8211; The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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		<title>8 Reasons to Watch an Upcoming Family Movie Night</title>
		<link>http://thedadjam.com/videos/8-reasons-to-watch-an-upcoming-family-movie-night/</link>
		<comments>http://thedadjam.com/videos/8-reasons-to-watch-an-upcoming-family-movie-night/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jun 2011 04:42:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Head Jammer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Videos]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thedadjam.com/?p=1423</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Recently I was invited to the set of Walmart and Procter &#38; Gamble’s (P&#38;G) 8th Family Movie Night as part of a Dad Blogger tour. It was a ton of fun, and now I&#8217;m back ...]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_1439" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9081.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1439" title="IMG_9081" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9081-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Lunch with Josh and the APs</p></div>
<p>Recently I was invited to the set of Walmart and Procter &amp; Gamble’s (P&amp;G) 8th <a href="http://familymovienight.com/about-family-movie-night/" target="_blank">Family Movie Night</a> as part of a Dad Blogger tour. It was a ton of fun, and now I&#8217;m back to tell you my Top 8 Reasons why you should watch the film when it&#8217;s released.</p>
<p><strong>Bonus</strong>: Stay tuned for the end of this Jam where you&#8217;ll see a video of me in action interviewing some real, live, stars of the upcoming film (that&#8217;s right, I didn&#8217;t use CGI to just make it look like I was really interviewing them).</p>
<p><strong>8. If the statistics give us any indication of your wants, then you want to watch this movie anyway.</strong></p>
<p>According to research conducted by P&amp;G and Walmart with the  Association of National Advertisers’ (ANA) Alliance for Family Entertainment, 94 percent of those surveyed said it’s extremely or very important that their families spend time together, and entertainment is a primary way their families get together.  81 percent said they enjoy watching movies with their families and 75 percent enjoy watching TV together.</p>
<p>Now,  I am very particular about the types of movies I will watch with my kids. We rarely watch movies, and if we do, they have to meet our very stringent criteria. Which brings us to lucky number 7 on our list:</p>
<p><strong>7. This movie gives parents what they want in a family film.</strong></p>
<p>When P&amp;G and Walmart talked to parents about the kinds of qualities they want to see in entertainment for their family, their research showed these to be the top five things most important to them:</p>
<div id="attachment_1441" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9177-resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1441" title="IMG_9177-resize" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9177-resize-300x176.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="176" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Watching the cast in Action</p></div>
<ul>
<li>Portrays the consequences of the character’s choices/actions</li>
<li>Portrays parents in a positive manner</li>
<li>Includes characters with high moral values</li>
<li>Teaches a lesson</li>
<li>Does not contain profanity or swear words</li>
</ul>
<p>And this movie delivers on all these important qualities.</p>
<p><strong>6. Football, football, and more football.</strong></p>
<p>So, enough with the statistics already, lets get down to the meat and potatoes of this film.</p>
<p>Let&#8217;s see&#8230; the main characters&#8217; father (Frank Walker &#8211; played by the legendary Beau Bridges) is a football coach, one of his sons (Dean Walker &#8211; played by Josh Braaten) is a former football player turned football coach, and the other son (Jake Walker &#8211; played by &#8220;his looks make me jealous&#8221; Ryan McPartlin), plays an NFL football star. Needless to say, this movie is going to deliver a lot of fun football sequences. Warm up the pigskin and put some steak on the bar-b baby!</p>
<p><strong>5. Its a great father-son flick.</strong></p>
<p>The main story is about a son who leaves home to play football for the NFL, and doesn&#8217;t speak to his family for years during that time. When he gets a call with news of his father&#8217;s heart attack, he heads home and reunites with his family. While he is with his family, he faces some tough choices about whether to stay with his family, or head back to the NFL. I won&#8217;t tell you how it ends, but you can guess this film makes for a lot of great father son moments, and starting points for some good family discussions.</p>
<div id="attachment_1440" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9120.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1440 " title="Beau Bridges" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9120-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">A Laugh with Beau</p></div>
<p><strong>4. Beau Bridges.</strong></p>
<p>See the man, the myth, the legend in action. I did, and I was impressed. Nuff said.</p>
<p><strong>3. Cast and crew are AWESOME.</strong></p>
<p>While on the movie set, I had the opportunity to sit and talk to several cast and crew members, including the Associate Producers, the Director (Doug Barr), and actors Ryan McPartlin, Beau Bridges, and Josh Braaten. We also talked to Bryant and Maggie &#8211; two of the children in the movie, who are real stars of the show.</p>
<p>All I can say is that they are all amazing, and all very passionate about bringing you the best family movie possible. You&#8217;ll see what Doug and the cast members have to say in the video at the end of this Jam.</p>
<p><strong>2. They put a heck of a lot of work into making it.</strong></p>
<p>All I can say is WOW. Before visiting this movie set, I really had no idea how much work went into making a movie. I mean, the house that they were filming in was completely redecorated to match the set designer&#8217;s wishes. And when they&#8217;re done filming, they&#8217;ll have to put the house back the way they found it, because, um, well, its somebody&#8217;s actual house.</p>
<div id="attachment_1442" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9355-resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1442" title="IMG_9355-resize" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9355-resize-300x189.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="189" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">The kids were real stars!</p></div>
<p>Not only that&#8230; the attention to detail is amazing. So much work goes into making sure everything stays consistent from scene to scene. Including the wardrobe, props, and set. That crew can handle my logistics any day.</p>
<p>And by the way, those actors had to eat a lot of chicken and potatoes to get through the takes of the dinner scene we watched them film that day. Kudos to them for that (I woulda done it too&#8230; you have to make some sacrifices for your art, after all).</p>
<p><strong>1. This video right here.</strong></p>
<p>Well, if I haven&#8217;t said enough, this video says it all. If a picture is worth a thousand words, this video is worth about 3 million. So sit back, relax, and enjoy &#8220;The Dad Jam on the set of the 8th Walmart and Proctor and Gamble Family Movie night.&#8221;</p>
<div id="attachment_1443" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 310px"><a href="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9276-resize.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1443" title="IMG_9276-resize" src="http://thedadjam.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_9276-resize-300x215.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="215" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Ry and Me</p></div>
<p>Listen to what Beau and Ryan (yes, we&#8217;re on a first name basis now) have to say about fatherhood and their advice for new dads as well. Definitely words to live by! (<strong>Warning</strong> &#8211; you see me chewing gum &#8211; it gets pretty ugly. But on the bright side, the good looks of Beau Bridges and Ryan McPartlin provide more than sufficient compensation.)</p>
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<p><span style="color: #808080;"><em>Note: My trip to the set and expenses while I was there were paid for by P&amp;G and Walmart Family Movie Night. The opinions expressed in this post are all mine.</em></span></p>
<p><a href="http://thedadjam.com" target="_self">Return to Parenting The Dad Jam Home</a></p>
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