Listen Now

In our last episode of 2014, I share my (new) ideas about goal setting and how I'm turning a blind eye to all the "Goal Setting Gurus" with all their paid goal-setting plans.  We also spend some time in discussion with my wife, Mary, regarding a variety of topics pertaining to goals, Christmas, a driving teenager, and the fear of missing out. FEATURED CONTENT - LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH, AND LISTEN Well, if you read any amount of blogs or listen to podcasts, I'm sure you have seen or heard a thing or two about Goal Setting. There are many "entrepreneurs" out there who are pushing their system of setting goals. Just go on the internet and Google Goal Setting and you'll find 300,000 pages ready for your goal setting reading enjoyment. Crazy, right?  But, this is the time of year when many people begin to evaluate how they have done on their previous year's goals and start to think about what goals they want to set for the coming year. It's also the time of year when "entrepreneurs" begin pushing their goal setting plans for people to buy. Last year on this podcast and in the blog, I talked about my goals, too. I talked about how I did with my 2013 goals and what my plans were for 2014. I set some lofty goals this year, too. But, I'm not going to talk about which ones I reached and which ones I didn't because I don't believe it's all that important. It's not that I don't think goals are important - it's just that I am tired of seeing people put everything into goals that ultimately take time away from their faith, their families, and their friends. Maybe you're thinking that my attitude has something to do with the fact that I didn't reach all of the goals I set for myself this year. And, you know what? That might be part of it. But, seriously, I have seen so many people set such challenging goals that it literally destroyed the things that were, or should be, truly important to them. I have seen people ignore their faith (I've been one of those), I've seen their goals take over their lives to the point where they don't spend any time with their families. I've also seen friends who have reached their goals only to find out they missed out on important milestones in their lives, their families lives, and their friends lives. I don't want to be that person. But, I still want to make sure I'm growing and doing the things I love to do but in 2015, I'm going to do that in a way that is organic and conducive to being happy. This probably sounds outrageous. How can I

In this week's episode, I share five awesome tools to help you save time and money on Christmas shopping this year. But, first we'll look at an app that I've been using to help me stay focused on my daily journaling. Then, in Prayerful Parenting, we'll discuss the classic kid move of testing boundaries. TWEAK OF THE WEEK -  DAY ONE I mentioned earlier that I’ve been a little down because I feel like I’ve been distracted lately and have fallen behind on some stuff. Well, blogging and podcasting is not exactly brain surgery, I know. But, if you stop writing, you don’t have content. If you don’t have content, you just aren’t creating value for anyone. So, to motivate myself, I started using an App called Day One. I’ve heard many people talk about this tool but I had never tried it because I felt that it may just be a waste of my time. But, I’m finding the opposite. Day One is a journaling app for iPhone, iPad and Mac that allows you to journal your life as it happens. Or you can use it as I do and set a reminder to just free write about your day before you go to bed. The app, whether you are using it on your mobile device or on your Mac, is clean and distraction free, which makes it easy to just get lost in what you’re writing. There’s even a full screen mode so you can avoid distractions of other things you have going on on your computer (for me, that is usually Facebook). You can also add pictures to your writing which is very cool. Imagine seeing something that inspires you to write, you take a picture of it with your phone, and then quickly jot down your thoughts. Some other cool things the app includes are inspirational quotes and questions to get the creative juices flowing, customized writing reminders, the ability to create tags and hashtags. It also syncs between all of your Mac devices using DropBox or iCloud and you can export to PDF and even print your entire journal on paper if you choose to. You can also share your journal over Twitter, Foursquare, Tumblr, and Facebook. Now, here is where it gets really cool, though. Every entry you write is automatically tagged with your location via GPS, the temperature and weather of where you were when you wrote it, the time and date, and even what music was playing on your phone while you were writing. Now, that is some serious journalling! Even if you don’t have a blog, this app is great for just keeping notes on what’s going on in your life, whether for personal reasons or fo

In this week's episode, I share four great time savers that you can use with the latest iOS update for iPhones and iPads, as well as how I recorded today's episode a little differently than usual -  from a hotel while out of town on business. I also share an app I've been using that allows me to save time by curating things I see on the internet so that I can find them later all in one place.  And,  in Prayerful Parenting, we'll see how important it is to remember that Jesus is enough to help our kids get through tough times. Before all that, though, I discuss how much fun I had on Jim Collison's Home Gadget Geeks podcast last week. TWEAK OF THE WEEK -  POCKET If you spend any amount of time on the internet, you’ve probably come across thousands of blogs or news items that really catch your eye but you just don’t have time to read. Or maybe you just want to read it again someday or it has info that you could use at a later time. Well, you have a couple of options. You can either bookmark it and end up with a favorites list on your browser that is unorganized with thousands of entries you may or may never go to again.  Or, you can save the articles to your Pocket and go back to them and read them when you have time. When you save things like websites, YouTube videos, or news articles, Pocket will organize them in an easy to search way so that you can go back later and check them out. Pocket works on your phone, tablet, and computer so you can save it while on your phone (sometimes it’s hard to read) and then check it out later when you get home on your computer. It’s also integrated into apps you already use like Twitter or FlipBoard and Chrome browser also has an extension making it easy to save content that way, as well. From the Pocket site, you can also share items to Facebook, Twitter, or a variety of other platforms. So, if you’re tired of taking hours cleaning out your favorites folder every couple of months, try Pocket and save content in one easy to find place.   PRAYERFUL PARENTING - ALLOWING JESUS TO BE ENOUGH Scripture: John 15:5 from Contemporary English Version 5 I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me. Please tell me you’re having the same problems with your kids as we are. Lately, we’ve seen one of our kids, in particular, becoming more and more rebellious and, even, disrespectful. At

In this week's episode, we cover a variety of topics Mary and I have faced as parents in the past few weeks. These are things you all might be dealing with or have dealt with in the past, as well. If there is anything you can glean from our experiences, we are glad we can help. Better yet, if there are things that you might be able to share with the Dadrenaline community from your experiences would be even better. We're not perfect parents - not sure any of us will every be - but it's always nice to hear and see what other parents who are successful are doing. Aside from that, though, I take a look at a new app I'm using called Sweeps that has really made an impact on the way I use Evernote.  It also helped me become much better at prioritizing tasks that I have on my to-do list for both work, my personal life, and for Dadrenaline. TWEAK OF THE WEEK -  SWIPES This week I found a great companion app for Evernote called Swipes. And it works on both the iOS and Android platforms, as well as a web based app you can use in your browser. So, what does it do? It’s a task app that claims to help you to be more productive through prioritization of tasks and to-dos. Swipes does this in four different ways. Work Smart by focusing on important things and snoozing the rest for later.  The idea is that long lists of tasks can be stressful. Also, when you see the long list of things to do, you can lose focus on the important ones.  With Swipes, you can snooze the things that are not high priority and see them later when your done with the important stuff. Achieve Flow by cutting out distractions and moving directly into focus mode. The easy interface will allow you to swipe, tap and plan, getting rid of any distractions that might be in the way. Power up Evernote and take notes in your Swipes notebook.  Those notes will then be synced into your Swipes app so you can prioritize and get things done. Enjoy!  If you’re like me, you love using checklists and to-do lists because it’s visual and you can see yourself getting things done. This app will do that for you and you’ll be able to save time doing it. PRAYERFUL PARENTING - IDENTITY THEFT Scripture:  Colossians 3:2-3 from Contemporary English Version 2 Think about what is up there, not about what is here on earth. 3 You died, which means that your life is hidden with Christ, who sits beside God. I’m sure you’ve noticed over the past few years that Identify Theft has become a huge problem in our

Today's guest has a personal finance blog and podcast at MoneyPlan SOS where he teaches people to "pay attention, not interest." Because of his efforts, he was recently named winner of the 5th Annual Plutus award for the Best Debt Blog. He also blogs at Yes! You Can Podcast Too where he motivates and helps podcasters become better. And recently, he was named editor of Podertainment Magazine. On top of all that, though, he is a devoted husband and father with a true servant's heart. If you follow Steve on Twitter or Facebook, read his blog, or listen to his podcast, you know what he stands for when it comes to personal finance. We cover much of that in this episode including his Virtual Budget Coaching Course.  We also look at how he started helping others with podcasting. But we also get to learn a little more about him personally, including how he met his wife, his relationship with his daughter, and how he manages to juggle all he has going on in his life. Before that, though, we take a look at a simple investment tool called Betterment. TWEAK OF THE WEEK - BETTERMENT "With a decade of experience in finance and as a CFA charterholder, Betterment CEO Jon sought an investment service that would deliver the best possible results and save him time and money. A service to build wealth, yes, but more importantly give him the peace of mind and the time to pursue his career and enjoy other things in life." - Betterment About Page Betterment is a site that I believe in and use for all of our small investment goals.  It's so easy to set up. Just sign up, link your checking account, and set up different goals for your investments. These goals can be long term like retirement or you can use them for your emergency fund, a car purchase, education, or whatever you want to save money for. Just decide how much you want to put in the goal, how much you want to deposit every month, how much you want to get to before you reach your goal, and when you want to reach your goal. Simple. Then just leave it alone. The site will give you advice on how risky to set up your investments based on how far off your goal date is. Another aspect of this that is awesome is that you can track everything on an app on your phone or tablet making it even easier. If you'd like to try Betterment - click here and get $25 free. Resources Mentioned MoneyPlan SOS MoneyPlan SOS Podcast  MoneyPlan SOS Virtual Budget Coaching Course Steve Stewart on Twitter MoneyPlan SOS on Fa

My guest today has spent the past 11 years in the wireless industry. He has a wealth of knowledge and has recently turned his attention to his website and podcast called Smartphones Made Easy where he teaches and coaches those of us who struggle with s...

As parents, we can sometimes be overprotective and worried about our kids, especially when we see so many negative situations that we see in the media when it comes to kids experiences. We obviously can't live in a bubble, though, but we can learn to identify issues in our kids, or any kids for that matter, and deal with those issues appropriately by seeking help. We are joined on this episode by a special guest, Dr. Guy Macpherson, from the West Coast Trauma Project. HIs goals are to raise awareness of trauma and to help trauma therapists thrive.  Aside from all of that, Guy is a parent just like us so he knows our concerns and struggles and has some great resources to help us out. But first, we start this episode with a short rant on some of the latest news from the NFL regarding players involved with domestic violence.  Specifically, I address the indictment of Minnesota Vikings player Adrian Peterson, on charges of abusing his own child by disciplining him with a switch that left many bruises and lacerations on his body. The way the NFL has handled some of these cases recently has been less than stellar but I do not give my opinion on that. Instead, as a parent, I want to make sure that all of us are more aware of those around us who may be experiencing such pain in their lives and that we may identify those pains and lead whoever faces these challenges to professionals who can help them. As parents, teachers, coaches, and friends, we must make a stand and help those who struggle with any type of trauma. Guest Interview - Dr. Guy Macpherson It was such an honor to have Guy on the show and to hear him talk with such passion and compassion about his chosen field, one where he has the ability to help people every day. This interview was both informative and helpful  not just for parents, but for anyone who is living with past trauma, around people who have faced trauma in their lives, or who are teaching or coaching kids who face these types of issues. Episode Resources West Coast Trauma Project How To Ask About Child Abuse Trauma Therapist Podcast Guy Macpherson on Twitter  

We took the kids school shopping, bought them the best pencils and three ring binders known to man, and even gave them a pep talk the night before the first day of school. That's it, right? Well, not really, it's just the beginning. Now, it's time to see how the first couple of weeks are going and what we can do as parents to help them be as successful as possible.  To do that, though, is sometimes like pulling teeth. If your kids are like ours, they sometimes act as if everything is awesome just so they don't have to admit they are having problems. The key, though, is to ask the right questions. This is something I am great at when I'm at work.  But at home? Not so much.  Fortunately, my wife Mary is a professional and she offers up some great ideas in this episode. But first, let's take a look at what else we talked about in this week's episode: FRONT PAGE PARENTS Story #1:  Autistic boy tricked into ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Story #2: Ray Rice Domestic Abuse Case PRAYERFUL PARENTING - SEEING YOUR CHILDREN Based on Genesis 16:13 from Contemporary English Version 13 Hagar thought, “Have I really seen God and lived to tell about it?” So from then on she called him, “The God Who Sees Me.” What can we do to help our kids other than just listening to them? We can take the time to learn about them and to be a part of what they love. All of our kids are so unique that there is no simple cookie cutter approach to spending time with them.  They are probably different than us but we must celebrate who they are and what they are interested in. When we learn about, and then value their God-given uniqueness, they will feel "seen" and it will model for them how to open their hearts to you, to their friends...and to God. FEATURED CONTENT - 3 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR KIDS ABOUT SCHOOL As most of our kids are in at least their second week of school, I thought it would be a good idea to start opening up a dialogue with them to see how things are going. Unfortunately, I always have a tough time getting our kids to open up about that kind of stuff.  I'm lucky, though, because my wife Mary is a special education teacher specializing in behavior and is able to guide kids through some pretty tough times.  We're fortunate enough to have her on the show today to help us form some questions that we should ask our kids a couple of weeks into school to get a handle on what they may be struggling with and what we might be able to help them with this coming year.

I consider myself to be pretty cool in a lot of different areas in my life.  My athletic prowess, my taste in music, and my eye for great art are just a few of the things in which I have tricked myself into believing. When it comes right down to it, th...

Being a parent is awesome but it's also pretty stressful sometimes. There are ways to get around some of that stress, though, and all you have to do is see into the future. It's not as difficult as it seems, though. Another way to think about is looking ahead and planning. This is especially true when we start to think about starting a new school year. There are so many things that you can plan ahead for in order to keep the stress of this time of year to a minimum. In this episode we'll look at four things, in particular, that will help you to avoid a majority of that stress. But first, let's take a look at some other stuff we covered in this episode: FRONT PAGE PARENTS Story #1.  Study shows homework for younger kids not worth it. (Wish this study was done when I was a kid) Story #2. Kirk Cameron makes movie about baseball, family, and faith  Story #3. Ice Bucket Challenge all over the internet PRAYERFUL PARENTING - CONSEQUENCES BASED ON Genesis 2:24 from the Contemporary English Version 24 That's why a man will leave his own father and mother. He marries a woman, and the two of them become like one person. Have you ever been watching one of your kids about to do something that you know you've told them not to do and wanted to step in and warn them not to do it? It's tough letting your kids make mistakes, even though we know it's good for them to face consequences and learn from those mistakes. As parents it's our job to help them learn to survive in the world and we can't do that unless we allow them to make those mistakes.  By allowing them to this under our roof, we are giving them the gift of experience and a safe way for them to learn before they go out on their own. FEATURED CONTENT - TOP 4 THINGS TO DO BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS 1. Set Up Shared Calendar - Look ahead at school and work responsibilities and events and get them in the family's shared calendar before school even starts.  We do this using our iCloud shared calendar and avoid many different scheduling (as well as personal) conflicts by ensuring we are on the same page as our kids when it comes to our respective schedules. 2. Budget - Look at all the calendar events that have costs associated to them and start budgeting money to cover those costs.  YNAB is our budgeting software of choice because it allows us to forecast for different budgeting buckets to ensure we have money set aside for all kinds of different things throughout the year such as sports fees, school hot lun

One of our goals (or missions) as parents should always be to show our genuine selves to our kids. This week we talk about how Robin Williams did that for his kids and how we do the same for ours. Whether it's showing our vulnerability, our frustration, or pure happiness, we must give them all we have. Really, we should try to do that with everyone in our lives. We discuss this, among other things, in this episode of Dadrenaline. FRONT PAGE PARENTS Story #1:  Cookie Monster Eats more veggies than cookies Store #2:  Global Parenting Habits outside the U.S. Story #3: Robin Williams Reminder of What Kids Need   FEATURED CONTENT - ON A MISSION As I mentioned last week, my wife Mary was on a mission trip with our church's high school group during the past week. She joins us on this episode to share her experiences during the trip, including a great tribute to the kids she was with describing how they really showed God's love in the community they served. Episode Resources Dadrenaline Reader Survey Follow Me on Twitter Check Out Dadrenaline Facebook Page

If you've ever read "The Five Love Languages" by Dr. Gary Chapman, he writes that there are five ways to show love to someone else and that the challenge is that most people do not show love in the same way that they feel loved. The Five Love Languages are: Gift Giving Acts of Service Quality Time Words of Affirmation Physical Touch The key, though, is to identify what your own love language is, as well as those close to you. In today's episode I'll show you three ways to work towards that. But first, let's take a look at the rest of this episode's content: FRONT PAGE PARENTS Story #1:  Mom sells daughter's Katy Perry Tickets Story #2:  Extreme Parenting show debuts on Bravo Network Story #3: Dodgers Faith and Family Day PRAYERFUL PARENTING - PRAYING AFTER A MEAL BASED ON Deuteronomy 8:10  Contemporary English Version 10 After you eat and are full, give praise to the Lord your God for the good land he gave you. Why do we pray BEFORE a meal, rather than after? Especially when sometimes it feels like we rush through the pre-meal prayer to get to the food.  Maybe Moses was right when he told the Israelites to wait and pray after they had eaten, when they are relaxed and full, and thankful. We're going to try that at our house and see what types of conversations it opens up. TWEAK OF THE WEEK - UP NEXT If you're like me you have an abundance of apps on your devices, many of which you rarely use or even forget about. How would you like to have an app on your iPhone or iPad that could take the place of 2 or 3 other apps? Up Next is a to-do app that analyzes all of your calendars and to do lists, including those on Evernote, then shows the 3 most important things to work on at any moment. It also provides quick access to things like driving directions and one tap dial to make your task execution more efficient.  Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments below. FEATURED CONTENT - TOP 3 WAYS TO SHOW YOUR SPOUSE LOVE If you've ever read "The Five Love Languages" by Dr. Gary Chapman, he writes that there are five ways to show love to someone else and that the challenge is most people do not show love in the same way that they feel loved. But what do you do in order to love your spouse in their language? Well, here's 3 things you can do if you haven't already: 1. Talk to your spouse. This seems like a pretty simple one but it's much harder than we realize sometimes. If you have kids, much of your "talk time" often revolves aroun

Ever since I can remember, Christmas has come every December. In fact, now that I think about it, Thanksgiving is usually on a Thursday in November. Okay, I'm sharing the obvious with you. I'm sure all of you know when every major U.S. holiday lands each and every year. Okay, Easter can be a bit confusing and Father's and Mother's day seem to be a little elusive, as well, but they are right about the same time every year. So, why do we wait to budget for some of these things until the last minute when we know they're coming? There are many factors but most of them revolve around poor time management and foresight. In this week's episode we'll look at how everybody is prone to this (including me and Mary) and what we can do to be better manager of time and planners, especially when it comes to our personal finances. FRONT PAGE PARENTS This week we start a new segment where we'll take a look at stories in the news or on other blogs that revolve around both good AND bad parenting moments, all which are now out in the public eye. As parents we sometimes get caught up in the things we aren't doing well but we need to stop and look at all the stories around us. Some of these stories will inspire us but some will remind us that we're not as bad as we think. Here are this week's headlines: 6-Year-Old Boy Hugs His Mom For The First Time Ever, Thanks To A 3D-Printed Arm What Happens When High School Administrators Get Caught Plagiarizing? Katniss tipped to be among most popular baby names in 2014   PRAYERFUL PARENTING - IDOLS (AMERICAN AND OTHERWISE) BASED ON Psalms 115:3 AND Psalms 115:8 Contemporary English Version 3 Our God is in the heavens, doing as he chooses. 8 Everyone who made the idols and all who trust them are just as helpless as those useless gods. When we hear the word IDOL today, we usually think of American Idol. Or at least I do, even though I haven't watched the show since my fellow gray haired buddy Taylor Hicks won several years ago. There are so many more examples that are kids are faced with, though, when it comes to idols. When we were kids, life was much simpler but just think about all the things that are coming at our kids so fast these days. TV, Movies, Internet, Social Media, Music - there are so many things that can force us to take our eyes off the prize - and by prize I mean a life dedicated to Jesus. Trying to remind your kids of that can be so difficult but very important. Especially, when we are also inundated with

Being the father of a teenager can be tough. Being the father of a teenage daughter can be even tougher unless you understand the ins and outs of speaking "girl." I'm not going to say I've mastered the language but I have become better at the subtleti...

I don't travel for work much anymore but when I do (nod to the most interesting man in the world), I want to use the time away in the most productive way I can. More than anything, I want the time away not to be a waste of the time I have to be away from my family. With that in mind, I started thinking about some ways that I can use that time to my advantage. I flew down to Southern California for work yesterday and started to think of things I could do to accomplish that. Below are three ideas I have and I'm wondering if you have others to share. 1.  Work on things normally done at home. Instead of wasting time while at home working on things other than spending time with family, use the time in a hotel to work ahead. I recorded this episode, edited it, and wrote the show notes while at home. I also plan to write a few more posts for next week's blog this week so I can spend quality time with my family when I get back. 2. Brainstorm ideas of things to do with the kids. I'm always looking for great ideas for  adventures with the kids. Use travel time to come up with new things that the kids would love to do and start putting them on the calendar. 3. Plan out Date Nights.  Admittedly, I'm not very good at planning out date nights with Mary. Embarrassingly, it's usually her that comes up with the good ones. But this week I'm going to research different ideas of things I can surprise her with in the future (hopefully it works). So, these are just a few ideas but I am counting on all of you to give me some more. Episode Resources Steve Stewart - MoneyPlanSOS  Rey Brown - Smart Phones Made Easy

As parents, we live busy lives. We work full-time either in the home or outside of the home. We run our kids all over the place to get to appointments, school events, and practices. Of course, we all want to use our time effectively so that we can get everything done so we all buy smart phones and tablets to help us do that. The only problem is that there is sometimes a learning curve to get us where we need to be in order to save the time we want.  This week we'll look at how iOS users (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) can find some easy tricks to speed up some of the things we do to save some time. But first, let's look at what's going on in our Prayerful Parenting devotional and our Tweak of the week: PRAYERFUL PARENTING - EXAMPLES BASED ON 1 Corinthian 10:23-24 Contemporary English Version 23 "I have the right to do anything," you say - but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything" - but not everything is constructive. 24 No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. If you're part of the Dadrenaline community, you're probably familiar with how much we write about and talk about the importance of trying to live a life debt free based on Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. We do this for many different reasons, most of which revolve around living our lives for God following His rules of handling money. At the same time, we work hard and make sacrifices to live a life like that but we also save money through our budget to purchase things that we consider wants and not needs. That's okay but we have to be very careful how that is perceived by our kids because they may see something completely different than what is truly happening. Remember that communication is the key in ensuring our kids understand the why's of everything we do. Being transparent with them is always a great first step in continuing to grow a loving and understanding relationship with them. TWEAK OF THE WEEK - COSCHEDULE Trying to write a blog, produce a podcast, and handle all the social media that goes along with those things is not exactly hard labor. Don’t get me wrong - it’s time consuming and sometimes frustrating - but I love it.  The hard part is keeping everything in my two different lives (day job and blog/podcast job) separate and organized. Recently, though, I’ve found a reasonably inexpensive tool that helps that process a lot.  It's called CoSchedule. CoSchedule is a drag-and-drop editorial calendar for WordPress tha

Setting goals is pretty easy. Sticking to them is sometimes a little more difficult. As long as you keep moving forward, though, you can't go wrong. In this week's episode, Mary and I look back at the goals we made at the beginning of 2014 and see how we've succeeded AND struggled through the first half of the year. In my opinion, though, the most important part of setting goals is using them to constantly drive yourself forward. Sure, it's nice to make it to the summit but it's far more important to continue to grow and move forward. All this is especially easy to say for those of us (Mary and me) who struggled more than succeeded in our goals so far this year. Still, we are motivated by the fact that we are still gaining ground and it's nice to know that we have another six months to perfect our strategies to get where we want to be. Hopefully, you can relate to our conversation about goals and we would love to hear which goals you've set for yourself and how you're doing so far in 2014 to get to where you want to be.  Please leave a comment below and let us know! Tool of the Week Having moved into a new home in a new neighborhood recently, we found that we wanted ensure the safety of our stuff and to also check up on our dog Nina when we're not at home (she's a little nervous about new places). So, instead of investing in an expensive security system, we purchased a product called DropCam, which is basically just a camera that connects to the Cloud via Wi-Fi and can be placed anywhere in your house where there is power running. Basically, you plug in the camera, link it to your Wi-Fi, and begin using it. What's awesome is that the camera records to the cloud and you can pull up live and recorded video via the iPad or iPhone apps, as well as as an Android App.  Awesome!  This is a great tool to keep an eye on the house while you're at work, on vacation, or to even scare your daughter via the built in speaker while she's sitting on the couch watching TV (use this sparingly, though, as it could be dangerous to your health). Prayerful Parenting Scripture:  1 Corinthians 9:26-27 Contemporary English 26 I don't run without a goal. And I don't box by beating my fists in the air. 27 I keep my body under control and make it my slave, so I won't lose out after telling the good news to others. I usually talk about some spiritual discipline during this segment but today is different...kind of. There is no doubt that spending time in The Word and in prayer

Isn't it easy for kids to check out mentally as soon as that bell rings on the last day of school? It was for me when I was a kid. It's so important, though, to get your kids to continue to learn throughout the summer months and we'll give you 5 great ...

Last week I talked about the obstacles that had been in front of me over the previous 6 weeks and that had prevented me from being more consistent with both the blog and podcast. Well, I wasn't sure I was convincing enough so I brought my wife, Mary, on to corroborate my story about all we had been doing lately. Being a grown up with a job is tough.  Being a parent is tough. Being a grown up parent with a job while trying to turn a blog and podcast into a full time gig is nearly impossible. Not making excuses...okay, maybe making a few excuses. But I continue to go in the direction God points me - unfortunately, He hasn't shared His timetable with me. Book Giveaway I spoke about the new book "Smart Money Smart Kids" by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze in a podcast a couple of months ago and now I am excited to offer their book to one special reader at the end of June.  All you have to do is subscribe to Dadrenaline HERE between now and June 30, 2014 and you will be entered for a chance to win a free copy of the book (which is awesome, by the way). App of the Week Amazon Prime Members pay $99 a year that includes access to free 2 Day shipping of products, free movie streaming, and now...wait for it...Amazon Music! Yes, Amazon Prime now has it's own streaming app. So, is it better than Pandora? Yes, and no.  One great thing is that it is free as part of your Prime Membership (sure, it's not "exactly" free but it's an extra bonus if you're already paying for Prime. It's also cool because you can pick and choose songs, making your own playlists from their music catalog and there are NO ads! You won't get that with Pandora - they have ads unless you pay for the premium service. But, with Pandora you also have a much larger selection of music. Example: Pandora has one of my favorite bands, Mumford and Sons, but you won't find it on Amazon Prime Music (at least, not yet). So, can Amazon beat Pandora? At this point, I would say it's possible. Most people that I know love the idea of having multiple tools that are covered under one cost. Amazon gives us that with shopping, streaming video, and now streaming music. Pretty cool. Prayerful Parenting Scripture: 1 John 2:15-16 Contemporary English Version There are definitely times when I compare myself to others or compare what they have to what I have. We all do it sometimes. This constant pursuit of bigger and better material things never satisfies us and usually pull us further away from God at the same tim

[Tweet "The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated. -  Mark Twain"] If you're not a blogger or podcaster, you may not be familiar with the term "podfading." It's a word I hadn't heard myself until I looked into starting my own podcast about ...