Archive for the ‘Siendo Honesto’ Category

How to strike the balance between Softness and Strength in Parenting

The thing about being a parent is that children don’t come with instruction books and most of them are so unique that anything you learn with one you almost have to relearn with another.  As a dad – and someone who is by nature both laid back and decisive – I find that understanding when to be soft and when to be strong with my children is very difficult.

The other day I was reminded of this parenting dilemma when my son came back with a report card that just plain stunk to put it mildly.  My son Jonathan, now 13, is entering those puberty filled emotional days when everything revolves around him so when I saw his report card I was forced to calibrate my response.  (más…)

Being a Father of Four… is what makes me 2x stronger! #AngelSoft

If ever there were a cliche that rings true for me as a father of four it’s the one that  says “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.”

I don’t know what kind of person I would be without children but I know that being a father has made me twice as strong, efficient and wiser than I would have been without kids.

One of the most interesting ways that having this many kids has had on my life is that it’s forced me to be creative about how I manage EVERY part of my life and work.  For example, on a personal level, I have learned to accept that no two days are ever going to be alike.  Sometimes all the kids seemed to be magically in sync and cooperative, and on other days they are fussy with each other and/or with me and no amount of discipline seems to make a difference.

The biggest challenge my wife and I face has to do with how we manage our businesses and our family.  I wish we had a magic wand for this but there isn’t one.  The way we manage both is simply by being very flexible with each other and by using our time and resources very creatively.  Managing a household full of children means I may schedule meetings a little later in the morning than most people do, or that we make a dinner meeting conditional on bringing one or two of the younger children whenever a babysitter is not available.  If one of the kids has to go to the doctor, well, that won’t be easy on our schedule but my wife an I deal with it as best we could by moving our schedules around.

All in all, being a father of four and a business owner has made me twice as strong and better at both tasks.  I have learned to be more efficient with my time and to live a more organized life (believe it or not).  I may have to plan ahead anticipating what morning pitfalls may occur but knowing this is normal makes the adjustments that constantly have to be made less stressful.  Despite the many personal sacrifices and hard work of it all I wouldn’t trade having my four children for anything else in the world because they have made me 2x stronger than if I never had them.

What was the last challenge you overcame? What has made you made stronger? Share your comments with me about your personal experience that made you 2x stronger. In addition to sharing your comments, our friends at Angel Soft want to make you 2x stronger – one lucky PapiBlogger reader will receive one Angel Soft product pack and a (1) $25 Target gift card and one (1) Angel Soft 2x Stronger pack with 4 rolls (Valued at $1.99).  To be eligible, please leave a comment about a recent challenge that you overcame that made you 2x stronger. One winner will be selected at random via random.org.

To learn more about how Angel Soft is 2X stronger, visit their Facebook Page:https://www.facebook.com/AngelSoftLatino. Or, follow Angel Soft Latino on Twitter:@AngelSoftLatino.  

Have a shopping trip planned? Purchase, Angel Soft 2x Stronger!Grab the coupon! Click on http://angelsoft.com/#/coupon

This is part of a sponsored campaign with Latina Mom Bloggers and Angel Soft.  However, all opinions expressed are my own.

(English) A Tale to Uplift the Teachers in Your Life

 

(English) PapiBlogger’s Newest Adventure for 2012? A Brand New Baby!

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Biker Santa Greetings from Miami

 

Family Snapshot: Briani Tells Santa How Good She’s Been

Miercoles Mudo: Un Cambio de Pañales Urgente

Nace un Hashtag para los papis latinos: #LatinoDads

Una de las pocas cosas que sinceramente me gustan de Twitter son los hashtags.  Como el mundo de Twitter tiene hashtags para casi todas las aficiones, causas y calamidades del planeta, hoy quiero anunciar la inauguración de un hashtag idóneo para todo el que quiera “tweetear” contenido, enlaces, ideas o declaraciones que puedan atraer directamente a los padres latinos.

El hashtag que voy a apoyar enormemente en PapiBlogger y mis tribus de medios sociales es (más…)

Miercoles Mudo: Hermanos Mojandose

A los papis latinos nos resulta más difícil ser buenos padres


En mi mundo latino, se sabe muy bien que desde que nacemos nuestras vidas se centran en torno a Mamá. Por supuesto, papi es importante—en ocasiones tal vez—pero ¿y Mamá? En general, Mamá es nuestra diosa, lo máximo y más profundo de nuestras vidas.

La veneración que se les tiene a las mamas en mi cultura procede de la influencia universal del catolicismo en Latinoamérica. Durante siglos, María, la madre terrenal de Jesús, o la Santa Madre de Dios (en dependencia de las diferentes creencias) ha sido el modelo por el que se mide y se inspiran las madres latinas, incluso sin proponérselo.

Aunque tal veneración nos beneficia, la otra cara del asunto es que los padres latinos no influyen en las familias y los niños tanto como debían. De alguna manera pienso que es injusto para las madres latinas, porque asumen una responsabilidad mayor (la parte más ardua de la veneración cultural que reciben) y además, los hombres no son tan responsables en su papel de padres como debería ser. (más…)

A veces pienso que llevo faldas

Ha transcurrido más de un año desde que encarné esta persona digital llamada PapiBlogger.  Francamente, como PapiBlogger refleja realmente quién soy como padre  y esposo, hoy, en conmemoración de la Semana del Día de los Padres (así es, amigos, los papis blogueros tienen una semana completa de homenaje) pensé darles a todos una perspectiva de lo que implica ser el primer papi bloguero latino.

Es como llevar faldas.  Lo primero que aprendí como papi bloguero es que hay que sentirse confiado entre mujeres, porque el mundo de los blogs –tanto el hispano como los demás – está dominado por las mamás. De eso me di cuenta enseguida cuando, a poco de inaugurar PapiBlogger, fui invitado a asistir a un evento promocional en Miami, patrocinado por una importante compañía de alimentos, y fui el UNICO papi bloguero latino en un grupo de otras  30 blogueras latinas. El evento, de temática femenina era magnífico, y las blogueras fueron super acogedoras, pero les mentiría si no les dijera que me sentí como un hombre con una falda escocesa en medio de un grupo de caballeros de esmoquin. (más…)

(English) Two Times a Hero: This Latino Dad is a Soldier and a Single Parent to Four Kids

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