Dad Space Podcast - for Dads by Dads

Episode 139 - A Birthday Reflection, My How Things Have Changed Around Here

As I sit alone on my birthday, the silence in the house feels both comforting and heavy. The vibrant chaos of family life has faded into quiet memories, and I find myself reflecting on the years gone by.

I remember the laughter echoing through these walls, the noise of birthday celebrations filled with balloons, cake, and the excitement of my kids. Each year, they would rush to make me cards, their little hands crafting heartfelt messages that warmed my heart. Now, those cards are tucked away in a box, cherished reminders of simpler times.

Today, there are no phone calls or surprise visits. I’ve become accustomed to this solitude, but it still stings a bit. I think about how quickly they grew up—how just yesterday we were celebrating their milestones together, and now they’re off chasing their own dreams. I’m proud of them, of course, but it’s hard not to feel a twinge of loneliness.

I pour myself a cup of coffee and look out the window at the familiar sights of our neighborhood. The world keeps turning, but my heart aches for the days when birthdays meant family gatherings and shared moments. I wonder if they’ll remember me today or if life has swept them up in its relentless pace.

As I sit here, I choose to embrace this quiet time. It’s an opportunity for reflection—an invitation to think about what’s next for me. Maybe this is a chance to explore new hobbies or reconnect with old friends. Perhaps it’s time to invest in myself as much as I invested in them.

I take a deep breath and remind myself that this phase of life is just another chapter. While the house may be empty today, my heart is full of love for my children and gratitude for the years we shared.

And who knows? Maybe next year will bring new traditions or surprises.For now, I'll celebrate quietly—grateful for the past and hopeful for what lies ahead. Happy birthday to me; it’s a new beginning in its own way.

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https://dadspace.ca

music provided by Blue Dot Sessions

Song: The Big Ten https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/258270

E56 - Mark Craven - Dads, Kiss Your Sons, Facing Your Fears of Becoming A Dad and Finding Love for Your Son

Mark Craven is the author of several books and writes a self-development blog for his website, www.SuccessUpAhead.com. Mark also hosts the podcast, The Craven Effect. He has worked as a Math Instructor, Student Success Coach, and Senior Academic Advisor at the college level. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master’s degree in Higher Education Management. Mark lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his family Terrified to Become a Dad? So Was I.

Fear is often our first response when we discover we are going to be fathers. We talk to just about everyone we know or search for quick answers to give us some sense of confidence to see our way through the unknown ahead. But what if you didn't have a dad? What if you didn't have role models to follow? What if the whole idea of being a dad is so completely foreign to you that quantum mechanics seems easier to master? That's my story along with becoming everything to my son that I never had growing up.

As a teacher and coach in higher education, Mark Craven has researched numerous behavioral studies as well as the biology of neurological systems pointing to insights for new and expectant dads to adhere in Dad's, Kiss Your Sons, bringing a whole new level of significance to being a dad.

The current generation of dads has made fatherhood a part of their self-identity. They are seeking resources and feeling that there aren't enough content-related resources available to them.

Dad's, Kiss Your Sons is the book every dad needs.

https://www.successupahead.com/

https://dadspace.ca/

EPISODE 66 - Eric Guttmann - Be a Healthy Dad, You Can't Surge Trust, and Fat Loss Over 40

Eric Guttmann takes his military training and focuses now on helping Dad's live a healthier life!

The Book: Fat Loss After 40: A Simple System to Reduce Inflammation, Reset Your Body, and Restore Health First it’s five pounds, then ten. Before long, you find yourself fifty pounds overweight and relying on motivation to magically melt the pounds—only your motivation is gone.
Perhaps you’ve always struggled with weight gain. Or maybe this was never a concern until your forties. For most of us, though, weight gain is a constant battle that becomes harder to win the older we are.
How do we make progress against Mother Nature? When do we stop fighting our own bodies? In Fat Loss After 40, retired Naval Officer Eric Guttmann—a health and fitness expert—provides his sensible system for shedding fat without starvation or excessive exercise. He shows you how to adopt a successful mindset and incorporate an elimination diet to reduce inflammation and drop pounds—potentially ten to fifteen in the first thirty days. You’ll learn how to reap benefits from fasting, incorporate a single exercise to boost human growth hormone, and use supplements to optimize cellular energy. If you’re tired of bearing the burden of excess weight, Fat Loss After 40 is the inspiration and know-how you need to lose the pounds—for good. Eric Guttmann is an author and an Ultimate Human Performance (UHP) certified physio/kinesiology expert who served for more than twenty years in active duty as both a Naval Flight Officer (NFO) and a Foreign Area Officer (FAO). With several instruction certifications, including Elite Combat Fitness and Commando Krav Maga, Eric is a US Navy Certified Fitness Leader (CFL) with degrees in Physical Education and National Security Affairs. He studied acupuncture and Eastern medicine. He was also a collegiate track athlete in the javelin, along with judo and gymnastics. https://www.instagram.com/eric_guttmann

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https://dadspace.ca/

Episode 141 - Podcast Rewind - Jim Burns, Empty Nesting and Living With Your Adult Children

Back on episode 15 of Dad Space, Jim Burns was an early guest and I really love our conversation around preparing for the empty nest and how to effectively parent your adult children.

Episode 15 - https://youtu.be/mLu4tLCbj5k

Book: Finding Joy in the Empty Nest: Discover Purpose and Passion in the Next Phase of Life

When the kids are gone, you can discover a richer, deeper, and more fulfilling life than you ever imagined!

Whether you've been looking forward to it or dreading it, the experience of coming home to an empty nest brings with it a well of emotions, realizations, and one gigantic, all-consuming thought: Now what? In Finding Joy in the Empty Nest, Jim Burns combines his personal experiences with his expertise as a family educator to help you navigate your new life as an empty nester and find joy in this new season of life.

Rather than offering shallow suggestions of hobbies you should take up, Burns encourages you to actively pursue a fresh start, reinvent yourself, and thrive. Backed by extensive research and filled with interviews with fellow empty nesters, this book equips you with practical advice and timeless principles, teaching you how to:

• Change the relationship you once had with your children for the better
• Face big issues--including aging parents, finances, and kids returning home--with confidence
• Rekindle your fire and purpose to live with passion day by day

Amid Burns' wealth of know-how, you'll uncover what may be the most important takeaway of all: the best is yet to come.

Praise for Finding Joy in the Empty Nest:

"Jim Burns is smart, witty, grounded, and immeasurably practical. Whether you're getting close to the second half of marriage or are in the thick of it, you won't want to miss out on this fantastic book."

--Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott, bestselling authors of Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts

https://a.co/d/iZJqr3F

Book: Doing Life with Your Adult Children: Keep Your Mouth Shut and the Welcome Mat Out

Are you struggling to connect with your child now that they've left the nest? Are you feeling the tension and heartache as your relationship dynamic begins to change? In Doing Life with Your Adult Children, bestselling author and parenting expert Jim Burns provides practical advice and hopeful encouragement for navigating this tough yet rewarding transition.

If you've raised a child, you know that parenting doesn't stop when they turn eighteen. In many ways, your relationship gets even more complicated--your heart and your head are as involved as ever, but you can feel things shifting, whether your child lives under your roof or rarely stays in contact.

Doing Life with Your Adult Children helps you navigate this rich and challenging season of parenting. Speaking from his own personal and professional experience, Burns offers practical answers to the most common questions he's received over the years, including:

• My child's choices are breaking my heart--where did I go wrong?
• Is it OK to give advice to my grown child?
• What's the difference between enabling and helping?
• What boundaries should I have if my child moves back home?
• What do I do when my child doesn't seem to be maturing into adulthood?
• How do I relate to my grown child's significant other?
• What does it mean to have healthy financial boundaries?
• How can I support my grown children when I don't support their values?

Including positive principles on bringing kids back to faith, ideas on how to leave a legacy as a grandparent, and encouragement for every changing season, Doing Life with Your Adult Children is a unique book on your changing role in a calling that never ends.

https://a.co/d/1F6qen6

https://homeword.com/about/jim-burns/

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https://dadspace.ca

music provided by Blue Dot Sessions

Song: The Big Ten https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/258270

EPISODE 10 - Christopher Veal Author of The Whole Man - Evolving Masculinity

Today we welcome Christopher Veal to the podcast!

About our Guest

Christopher Veal is a former combat veteran, and a Black man with 25 years of experience in talent and leadership development. He hosts The Vulnerable Man podcast, is a TEDx speaker, and an executive coach and leadership consultant. He works with leaders to leverage vulnerability to create a deeper connection between themselves and those under their charge.

Christopher continues to learn how to be more vulnerable himself, finding inspiration in his amazing daughter. His new book, The Whole Man, is an examination of what it means to be a man, and how we benefit from evolving our definitions of masculinity and manhood in the 21st century.

He works deliberately each day to live into his purpose of creating authentic connections. He knows that some days he does better than others at leaning in to being vulnerable, and aims to improve with every interaction.

In his life he’s worn many hats: father, executive coach, Marine Corps officer, TEDx speaker, organizational development professional, facilitator, traveler, keynote speaker, podcast host, student of life, music lover, and explorer. He is excited to finally be adding Author to that list with the publishing of The Whole Man: Evolving Masculinity, which is the latest iteration of his quest to destigmatize the word ‘vulnerability’ for men.

When he’s not busy with these other pursuits, he loves spending time with his amazing daughter, listening to music, playing piano and (a little) guitar, mountain biking, riding his motorcycle, and is somewhat successfully training their Boxer, Apollo.

The Book

The Whole Man: Evolving Masculinity

What holds men in unhealthy masculinity? Why is vulnerability looked down on in the 21st century?

In The Whole Man, author Christopher Veal delves into these questions. Showing how men are held in unhealthy masculinity, Veal shows how to incorporate the idea of vulnerability to create a greater connection with people around us.

By incorporating interviews from his podcast, The Vulnerable Man, Veal saw a need for us to evolve a more inclusive approach to how we define masculinity. Key to this vision is the de-stigmatization of the word “vulnerability.” Embracing this vulnerability allows men to live a healthier and more complete version of what it means to be a man.

In this book, you will learn about:

How masculinity has influenced men to be closed off from their emotions

The five habits of the “Whole Man”

How to build and maintain rich and deep relationships with others

The Whole Man is a book that speaks to people who want to look at masculinity in a healthier and more inclusive way, and who are ready to move beyond the confining views of outdated masculinity.

Buy the book here!

https://www.wholemanjourney.com/

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https://dadspace.ca/

podcast produced by TrueMediaSolutions.ca