"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 6: Andy & Charlie (howtobeadad.com)

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers (Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)
ANDY
Andy Herald
3 Sons - Cody 14, Max 12 & Lucas 3
Graphic Designer
Pasadena, CA

CHARLIE
Charlie Capen
1 son - Finnegan 3.
Actor/Digital Arsonist
Los Angeles, CA

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?

ANDY
October 1st. I consider Halloween part of the holiday season. One sort of rolls into the next.

CHARLIE
As soon as my wife starts force-feeding us holiday music. Also? Starting the holiday cheer at the end of July (I'm talking to you Costco) is bullshit.

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive? 
ANDY
Decorating and Christmas music always get us into the swing of things despite the lack of seasons here in the Los Angeles area. Frank Sinatra is the family Christmas standard though my wife poisons the well with Celine Dion from time to time.

CHARLIE
We've established a number of traditions on and before Christmas that maintain the magical sentimentality of the holidays. Most of them involve food or long walks. All involve chocolate.

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

ANDY
"It's a Wonderful Life"

CHARLIE
I want to say "Treevenge" but my final answer is "It's a Wonderful Life" and "White Christmas".

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

ANDY
Power Wheels, those electric miniature cars kids could drive and crash into other kids with.

CHARLIE
Respect? Actually, I really wanted to get fireworks and Power Wheels but never got them. That's why I drive around in an SUV firing Roman candles out of my muffler.

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

ANDY
Real. Noble Fir or better. Accept no substitutes. Unflocked. I'm super serious about my Christmas trees. Everyone else can do WHATEVER they want.

CHARLIE
Real. They have sap pockets you can pick at and those aluminum trees they had in Charlie Brown Christmas are bunk.

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

ANDY
Consumption of massive quantities of eggnog.

CHARLIE
We don't have many unique ones like sculpting statues of Santa Claus out of frozen cider or candy cane dart games. We read "Night Before Christmas" on Christmas Eve and hug a lot, though.

8. So, like us, you have a blog where there's more than on contributor. I was curious how you do it. Who does what, how do you share the work load and how do you find the time?

ANDY & CHARLIE
We have a pretty rad complement of skill sets between the pair of us. Andy handles design, graphical media and the coding aspects. Charlie takes care of the video production, social media management and outreach. We both write and counsel each other on the direction of our work. And we Voltron mind-meld on the creative of nearly all media. Both of us write a narrative post each week, and switch off between doing 3 posts or 2 posts respectively.

We have a firm rule that if one of us is freaking out or having a shitty week, the other has to remain stable.

So, we seriously balance each other out. But how do we find the time? We don't. We invent it. Through sleep-deprivation, mainly.

HTBAD Links:
Blog - http://www.howtobeadad.com
Facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/howtobeadad
Twitter - http://twitter.com/howtobeadad
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/howtobeadad
YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/howtobeadad
Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/howtobeadad

"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 5: Kenny Friedman (@SmonkYou)

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers

(Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)

Kenny (wife staci) kid, Miloh (almost 3) just one kid and stopping at one. 

Creative director (design) in a suburb of Minneapolis but I just say minneapolis because to admit I'm from a suburb makes me die a little.

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?

No fucking idea. Seriously. Being Jewish (and I believe the token Jew of this 12 dads of Xmas) I'm always thrown off with Hanukkah changing every year. Next year it's the day before Thanksgiving which is wonky, sometimes it goes into January. That's a rambling way to say I don't know when they start. 

But I get into the Xmas season although it's not religious in my world. I guess it started for me last week this year when the family went driving around looking at the lights.

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive? 

Xmas–per that last question I don't keep it alive and probably kill it as when MF asked why there were lights I said Jesus was scared of the dark... It sounds reasonable to me.

But I did grow up with a family friend that had us over to decorate the tree every year. I'd love Miloh to have that opportunity as he grows because it's fun. 

For Hanukkah we do the dreidel thing but and have a felt menorah that he likes playing with. He is a bit too young to get it and I'm not into religion so it will be more of a celebration of that time of year.

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

Christmas Story... And I'm proud to say I've never seen It's A Wonderful Life 

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

Not that I can think of... We didn't have major cash but I got kick ass stuff when I was a kid... The best was the Hot Mattel Master Caster... It was awesome http://www.toysyouhad.com/Mastercaster.htm

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

Real wood Dreidel... The plastic ones are ehh... 

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

I eat Chinese food on Christmas. I think a lot of Jewish people do. There are a lot of Chinese restaurants open that day and the Jews love some Chinese food (I speak for all of us) so it becomes a Xmas tradition for a lot of people. It wouldn't be Xmas for me without it. http://www.smonkyou.com/2011/12/very-jewy-christmas.html

8. You own the self-proclaimed 'Best Freaking Daddy Blog Ever' and I noticed you haven't posted much lately. I was curious if this is the end of SmonkYou.com as we know it or if you're just super busy altely - and if so - with what!?

I think the only way for me to keep it the Best Freaking Daddy Blog Ever was to stop writing. If I was still writing I'd be pushing out total shit. Really I never meant to start a blog but then I had a thing; a blog about a dude who was scared of kids and now had one. It worked for me until it wasn't such a weird thing. If I still wrote I'd be doing stuff that bored me. Plus I wanted to spend time with MF instead of writing about spending time with him.

That's not to say it's totally dead. I'm starting a Masters Program for HCI (Human Computer Interaction) and I'm really into the psychology of that... Especially with kids. For instance although I'm all for digital and make my living building digital experiences I think digital stuff is semi-evil for super young kids. Perhaps I'll do posts on that and how it's easier to want to keep your kid away from it but hard to do in the real world.

For now I have some thoughts on that (and more) on notshitty.com but really I only have that site because the name came up in a meeting and I was blown away no one owned it... So I bought it.

Connect with Kenny:

smonkyou.com and twitter.com/smonkyou

"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 4: C.C. Chapman

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers. (Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)

My name is C.C. Chapman and I'm an author, photographer and speaker. I live in the woods outside of Boston with my two awesome kids, amazing wife and several pets. I'm the Founder of The Cleon Foundation and the author of Amazing Things Will Happen. 

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?

Thanksgiving is when it really starts for us because I have a house rule that no holiday music can be played until then. When I start baking pies the night before is when I'll pop up on the first Christmas tunes. I always start with the Tidings album from Allison Crowe. Once I hit play on that it is officially the holidays for me and will go until the new year.

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive? 

We all love Christmas and make sure to spend as much time as possible together during this time of year. We also have silly traditions like watching Elf together, making Christmas cookies with the grandparents  and eating pie for breakfast. It gets harder as the kids get older because there are more distractions, but so far it is working great.

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

A Christmas Story is a classic that I can watch over and over. Elf is just as good and I giggle every time I watch it.

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

Nothing that I can remember. I'm sure in the moment of opening presents there was something one year, but I've long since forgotten. 

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

There is NO discussion on this point. Real forever and always.

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

Pork Pie is a Chapman Christmas tradition. One of the easiest things on the planet to cook, but we only make it and eat it at Christmas for some reason.

8. We've written about 'The Challenges of Being a Working Dad' and 'Balancing Work and Family' in the past and I know that you are a very busy guy between writing books, public speaking and flying all over for conferences so I was curious if you had any tips or tricks for our readers about how you balance your work load and being an awesome Dad.

It isn't about balancing. I wrote an article recently called You Can't Parentshift because I wanted people to realize that you choose which things are most important. The only reason I work so hard is to provide for my family. I talk about it a lot with my kids so that they realize being away isn't easy or fun for me because I love nothing better than being home with them, but it is part of the career I've chosen.

The key (as in all relationships) is blunt honesty. As a family we share everything. It isn't always easy to have your spouse or children come right out and say how they feel about something, but it works for us. This way I know just what is going on with the kids and they know what is going on with me. Helps keep us on track.

"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 3: Hank Hampton

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers (Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)
First of all thank you so much for including me on this list. It's wonderful to be a part of something so awesome and be surrounded with some other really awesome dads. My name is Hank and I live in a wonderful small town in Arizona with my beautiful wife Danielle and our son Henry. We currently only have one little guy but we definitely plan on having more. 

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?

The Holiday Season starts right around Thanksgiving for us.  We starting checking our tree and light supplies and get out our big boxes of decorations from the garage.  We usually put up the tree in December but starting next year we are going all out on Thanksgiving weekend, especially now that Henry is really getting into it.

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive? 
Since having Henry it's been so fun to keep the magic alive!  His excitement makes it so easy.  This year has been the best so far.  We took him to the Polar Express just a few weeks ago and that was one of those moments that makes you remember what being a parent is all about.  The joy on his face the entire time was priceless.  The lights, the train, Santa- he was on sensation overload and he was loving every moment of it.  When Santa came on the train and passed out silver bells to all the kids, his face lit up with the hugest grin.  As he gets older I can only imagine all the awesome stuff we will be able to do with him.  The Polar Express is definitely going to become a yearly tradition in our house.  

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

My favorite Holiday movie easily has to be Home Alone. To me, it's timeless and classic. So far I've watched it twice since Thanksgiving and I know we plan on watching it again before Christmas. Thankfully this also happens to be one of Danielle's favorites too so it works out well!  A very close second is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.  I think that movie is also a major classic. 

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

There's really only one thing that stands out in my mind. It had to be when I was around 9 there were these really awesome Spider-Man toys. They were these small play sets that had a comic book cover but opened into a little action seen. Nothing huge but my mind was blown when I saw them. I was lucky enough to get one from my grandparents that year but I really wanted the whole set. Haven't been able to track them down as an adult but I'm sure I'll find them at Comic Con one of these years.

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

I assume that most folks here in Arizona get fake trees.  With how dry it gets here, even in the winter keeping a tree from getting too dry is fairly difficult.  I remember having a real tree a few times when I was a kid and I remember my parents getting so frustrated with them drying up and getting everywhere.  Once decent fake trees started showing up I remember we switched.  I must also admit it's really nice to pull the pieces out of the box and it's ready to go with lights.  Then we still get to decorate it, which was especially fun this year.  Henry wanted to do it all on his own.  Danielle and I sat and watched him decorate until it was perfect, and he spent about an hour and a half placing the ornaments.

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

Yes, we have a ton! Our small town is all about Christmas, so every year we go the Courthouse lighting, stroll downtown, and do all of our yearly holiday stuff. We do a really fun thing with Danielle's family were everyone has to wear their special Christmas PJs on Christmas Eve. I look at being a dad as giving me that opportunity to really create lasting traditions with our kids, and like I said up above, the Polar Express will definitely become a yearly tradition.

8. I know that you like collecting vinyl: both music and toys. Is there anything in particular in your collection that you are looking forward to holding onto and passing to Henry? Also, who has more toys, you or Henry?

I think I definitely give Henry some competition with our toy collections. I only see two options down the road, 1) he's going to be so stoked about my record and toy collection and will be excited about whatever I pass along to him or 2) he's going to think I'm a total dork.  I really hope it's option one.  I have so many prized Star Wars toys that I hope I can pass to him.  Plus from the many trips to San Diego Comic Con, I have a few gifts from friends that will be given to him once he's old enough.  I have also saved one version of almost every shirt that both Life In Pictures and Hour of the Wolf (my previous bands) have made.  So he's going to have a really awesome shirt collection as soon as he can fit into a size small. 

Twitter & Instagram @Hank3

Its been a HOT minute!

Its been a while, hasnt it? I want to put up a post really digging into whats been going on lately, but for the time being please accept these photos and a quick, wtf is up with y'all post. A lot has changed over the past year, all for the better! 

 Where do I even begin with Christian? He is huge, 10 going on 17! Video games, tons and tons of reading, legos, and bitching about homework, same old same old right?

 Hendrix wont stop growing either. He is obsessed with fire trucks, shower baths (plugging up the shower, turning it into a bath), our cat Ralph, the Octonauts, pizza, sushi, and his Bro-Bro!

 What has Dad been up to? A lot of growth this past year, especially through the summer. Never before has family been such a focus for me. My career as a DJ is also at an all time high, below is a photo of me opening for Flux Pavilion, one of the many gigs of that caliber I took on this year! Mama is working full time so I also became a stay at home dad, being that I work at night. Its rad! I basically started a stay at home preschool, Hendrix's mind is a sponge, he eats everything up! My relationship, as a father, has grown a lot with Christian as well. Good things in 2013 my friends, good things!

Whats Momma been up to, aside from being hot? She is the head womens stylist for Karmaloop and Miss KL, nbd right? It has been a big change with her gone days, but its been good for all of us. Change is always scary but it can help put things in focus, in terms of priorities and what you really want from life, more on THAT topic as well at a later post.

Photo cred: karmaloop.com

"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 2: Kevin Richardson

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers (Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)

Hello!  My name is Kevin Richardson and I'm blessed to be the husband of Jen and the father to Rowan as well as another baby girl who should be arriving any day now. Since Jen and I have been married (over 6 years) we've moved around quite a bit, but we currently call the Capital Region of New York home. 

I co-own a small web design & development company called Iron to Iron where I also serve as the principal designer. We've been in business for a little over 2 years but I've been designing professionally since 2002.

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?

Hmm… I guess I would have to say the week of Thanksgiving considering that's when my wife finds it appropriate to start playing Christmas music through all hours of the day.

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive?  Decorate. As long as there's Christmas lights on and a fire roaring, it's Christmas time in our house. 

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

Christmas vacation is a classic but I will inevitably grow tired of it someday, right?  Honestly, I just saw a commercial this morning for a new Mickey Mouse Christmas movie that I know my daughter will love. I'm pretty pumped about watching it with her. 

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

I'm sure there were years in the past that I was let down by not getting something I was hoping for but I can't think of anything off the top of my head. My parents did a good job hooking me up through the years. I'm very grateful for them!

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

What's a holiday tree? "Christmas" all the way! Real, and hand-cut, of course. Nothing beats the smell of fresh pine in your living room.

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

With our family scattered all over the place we tend to celebrate Christmas in a new place every year which tends to get in the way of any sort of tradition. However, now that my daughter Rowan is getting a bit older I imagine we'll probably start a few traditions for her. We'll see.

8. You have a new little on the way and could be here basically any day now. Are there any things that you learned from your experience with Rowan that are really going to help you when the newest addition arrives?

haha I really hope so! I think the one thing I've learned is how to have perspective. We were always pretty laid back with Rowan but there were definitely some days in the beginning that felt overwhelming. I'm sure those feelings will come flooding back before I know it but at least now I have the perspective to know they don't last forever.  

Kev's Design Company - irontoiron.com

Twitter & Instagram - @ENCRGothers

"12 Dads of Xmas" DAY 1: Sam Means

1. Why don't you start by introducing yourself to our readers (Name, Kids (How Many / Names), Occupation, Location?)
My name is Sam Means. I have one beautiful, loud, little girl, named Lola Birdie, who just turned 3. We live in Phoenix, AZ, where I run a merchandise company (Hello Merch) for bands.. and I've also been known to make a little music every once in a while.

2. When does "the Holiday Season" start for you?
That's a tough one, living in Arizona. We usually force ourselves into it the day after Thanksgiving, but I don't think it fully kicks in until the 2nd week of December. That's usually when the temperature starts dropping a little. Although, the heat seems pretty relentless this year. 

3. What do you and your family do to keep the magic of Christmas alive? 
My wife and I both grew up with a lot of traditions around this time of year, so we try our best to keep those alive, while also working in a few new ones to share with Lola.

4. What's your favorite holiday movie?

So many great ones, but I think it always comes down to A Christmas Story for me. So cliche, but so classic. 

5. Is there anything you always wanted for Christmas as a child and never got?

I really wanted this bike one year, I was probably around 10.. Santa hooked me up, but someone stole it out of my garage a couple hours later. For whatever reason, it didn't end up being replaced with the same bike and I was always a little bummed about it.

6. Holiday Tree or Christmas Tree: Real of fake? Discuss. 

What's a Holiday Tree? I would love to get a real Christmas tree, but I don't think my allergies could handle it :(

7. Do you have any unique holiday traditions? 

Since we're snow deprived, we like spread tons (bags and bags and bags) of foam peanuts in the living room at my parents house on Christmas morning.. then make my Dad clean it up. 

8. Recently you launched "Hi Apparel" and it's seeming to get a lot of buzz (we bought a bunch for Sierra actually!) and I was curious where you got the idea for it and what the future plans are for it.

I've had the Hello line for quote some time, but never really gave it much attention after the initial launch. I just recently updated the entire Hello Merch store system and seeing its potential, really revitalized my interest the clothing line again. Once the new stuff started taking off a little, we were getting requests to print the shirts in kids sizes, so we launched Hi for Kids, shortly thereafter. We're just taking it all day by day right now, but our main goal is to keep everything fresh. Hoping to constantly release simple, cute and most importantly, cheap alternatives to a lot of the overpriced labels out there.

http://hellohiapparel.com

Twitter & Instagram @hellohiapparel

http://means.am

Twitter & Instagram @sammeans